Ruthless Australia knock India out of WTC final; reclaim BGT after 10 yrs

Sydney, PTI: An out-of-sorts India was knocked out of the World Test Championship final as Australia cruised to a six-wicket victory in the fifth Test here on Sunday to reclaim the Border-Gavaskar Trophy after 10 years, leaving the visitors with several points to ponder in a difficult transition phase. Australia won the fivematch series 3-1 and also qualified for the World Test Championship final against South Africa slated at the Lord's from June 11 to 15. A target of 162 could have been trickier had new Test captain Jasprit Bumrah been in a position to bowl despite painful back spasms but once Virat Kohli led the team out, it was as clear as the Sydney skyline that defending the total would be next to impossible.

Bumrah deservedly claimed the player of the series honour for his astonishing haul of 32 wickets in five matches but that was hardly a consolation for the shambolic team performance that India managed. "Little frustrating but sometimes you have to respect your body, you can't fight your body. Disappointing, probably missed out on the spiciest wicket of the series," Bumrah said of his inability to bowl in the second innings during the post-match presentation ceremony. Prasidh Krishna (3/65 in 12 overs) and Mohammed Siraj (1/69 in 12 overs) were not a patch on Bumrah and despite multiple breakthroughs, they bowled too many poor deliveries to make it easy for the hosts to canter home in just 27 overs. Usman Khawaja (41), Travis Head (34 not out) and debutant Beau Webster (39 not out) completed the formalities, putting an end to India's misery in a tour that has exposed all of the team's batting frailties and an unhealthy reliance on Bumrah.

Once Bumrah was ruled out after he tried some shadow bowling during the morning warm-up session and didn't feel comfortable, the writing was on the wall. The magnificent Scott Boland (6/45) and the everreliable Pat Cummins (3/44) polished off the Indian tail for just 157 in 39.5 overs. If one takes out Rishabh Pant's fiesty 61 and Yashasvi Jaiswal's 22, the other nine players collectively contributed a mere 74 runs. The series would leave the men who matter in Indian cricket establishment with a lot on their minds when they deliberate on ways to get the house back in order. With six of the completed innings yielding less than 200 runs, one doesn't need a soothsayer to tell what went wrong on the tour. Regular skipper Rohit Sharma and batting talisman Virat Kohli flopped with technical issues troubling them throughout the season. Jaiswal (391 runs) was the top-scorer despite three ducks followed by rookie Nitish Kumar Reddy (298 runs), KL Rahul (276 runs) and Pant (255 runs).

As much as one wants to take a nuanced view of Rohit and Kohli's poor form but it is undeniable that both veterans are finding it increasingly difficult to stem the rot that has set in their batting. There are a few good youngsters in the fringes and the new World Test Championship cycle would demand that they be given a chance to develop over time. While a tough call on Kohli and Rohit is awaited, the BCCI brass also needs to seriously look at whether coach Gautam Gambhir is the right man to be incharge across formats. Under Gambhir, India have lost six Tests out of 10 during the season going by apart from being defeated in an ODI series in Sri Lanka. If Kohli and Rohit are held accountable, Gambhir can't be let off merely because the team is in transition.

The head coach's headstrong approach is an pen secret and it is not earning him too many friends in the dressing room. Ravichandran Ashwin's retirement after Brisbane and Rohit's eventual call to drop himself happened in a manner that can best be described as abrupt. Messing with a player's gameplan isn't the best way to manage as Rishabh Pant demonstrated by oscillating between too careful at times that only disrupted his natural rhythm.

IT'S FRUSTRATING BUT YOU HAVE TO RESPECT YOUR BODY: BUMRAH

Laid low by a back spasm, Jasprit Bumrah was frustrated at missing out on bowling on the "spiciest wicket of the series," but the premier India pacer emphasized that sometimes it becomes imperative for a player to respect his body. Bumrah could not bowl on day three when India needed to defend a small 162-run target on a tricky wicket. Australia needed just 27 overs to overhaul the target and claim the Border-Gavaskar Trophy after 10 years as they took advantage of Bumrah's absence.

"It was really frustrating but sometimes you have to respect your body, can't fight it. Disappointing, probably missed out on the spiciest wicket of the series," Bumrah said, who was named Player of the Series for his 32 wickets in the series, during the post-match presentation.

"Felt a bit of discomfort during my second spell in the first innings and had to check it out." Resuming day three at 141 for six, India lost their remaining four wickets for 16 runs to be all out for 157 in their second innings. Asked about the discussion in the morning, Bumrah said: "The chat this morning was about the same thing, about having belief and showing character. Lots of ifs and buts, the whole series was fought hard.

Sunny upset after not being invited to present trophy

The legendary Sunil Gavaskar on Sunday expressed his displeasure after not being invited to present the trophy, named after him and Allan Border, to Australia following their win over India in the high-voltage five-match rubber. Australia reclaimed the the Border-Gavaskar trophy after 10 years with a six-wicket win over India in the fifth and final Test.

Border presented the trophy to the home team but Gavaskar, despite being at the venue at the same time, was inexplicably ignored. "I certainly would have loved to have been there for the presentation. After all it is the Border- Gavaskar Trophy and it is about Australia and India," Gavaskar was quoted as saying by Code Sports. "I mean, I am here on the ground. To me it should not matter that Australia won when it comes to the presentation. They played better cricket so they won. That's fine. "Just because I am an Indian.

I would have been happy to present the trophy with my good friend Allan Border," he added. Both India and Australia have been competing for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy since 1996-1997 and the rivalry has grown to become one of the biggest in Test cricket.