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FIFTH TEST: AUSTRALIA VS INDIA, SCG, JANUARY 3-7
After a Boxing Day classic it's all come down to this with the Border-Gavaskar Trophy on the line as Australia and India face off at the SCG in the fifth test, beginning on Friday. There may have been many ebbs and flows but ultimately it was the Aussies who came out of Melbourne with a 2-1 series lead with debutant Sam Konstas' breathtaking 60 off 65 balls on the opening day, Steve Smith's imperious 140 and captain Pat Cummins' supreme all-round performance (90 runs and match figures of 6/117) counting for nothing until a dramatic final session in which the hosts claimed the seven wickets required to secure a 184-run victory. For India there were still plenty of highlights including the continued excellence of spearhead Jasprit Bumrah (match figures of 9/156), a remarkable maiden test century to young all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy (114) and a stoic 84 from prodigious opener Yashavi Jaiswal which looked to have earned the visitors a draw, before their startling collapse of 7/34.
Betting Strategy
Back Australia at $1.90+ for 2 units
There are plenty of factors at play in the match odds here with the draw relatively short given potential weather impacts, the close shave at the MCG and the fact that the Australians only need a stalemate to regain the trophy, meaning that they are out towards even money with an Indian win considered a similar possibility to the draw. Firstly, whilst rain is undeniably synonymous with the Sydney test, the forecast doesn't look overly troublesome, particularly on the opening days and although there may be some expectation that the Aussies play more conservatively, what hasn't been accounted for is the likelihood that India play more recklessly and hence pen up opportunities for the home side who have largely been on top since the Adelaide test.
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