India reached Sydney for the 4th test in an unassailable position with a 2-1 lead. They had lost the Perth Test due to the great mistake of playing no spinner. The Sydney test was the decider, and the Aussies were hoping that they would be able to win the test and square the series.

Virat Kohli, the Indian skipper, won the toss and elected to bat. Led by a superb 193 by Cheteshwar Pujara and later a powerfully struck 159 not out by newcomer wicketkeeper Rishab Pant, India powered their way to 622 for seven before Kohli called a halt to the massacre.

The only consolation for the Australian team was the dismissal of the in-form Virat Kohli, the best batsman in the world for 23.

India dominate Australia

Australia has replied with 236 for 6, and no play is possible so far on the 4th day due to rain. This will be small consolation for the Aussies who have no chance of squaring the series, and Tim Paine will have the dubious distinction of leading an Australia team to a first ever defeat on home soil in a series in Australia.

The domination over Australia in this series by India can be gauged from the fact that Indian batsmen have notched up five centuries while no Australian player could cross 100 runs.

On behalf of Australia, it can be said that they were without the services of two of their best players Steve Smith and Dave Warner who are sitting out serving a ban on them playing Cricket for one year on a charge of cheating in the ball tampering issue in South Africa.

The Guardian has reported that play has commenced and Australia is a wicket down and likely to be all out.

A milestone

The series in many ways is a milestone for both teams.

India has, at last, realized their full potential and Australia can think hard to rebuild their team. They will have to come up with a fresher and younger lot who can take Australia forward. In the meantime, India will be basking in the sun after a great series win, the first in Australia after 70 years.

India vs Australia history

India first toured Australia in 1947-48 under Lala Amarnath. The great Don Bradman led the Aussies at that time. It ended with 0-4 defeat, and the Indian team came back with not much show except for a century in each innings by Vijay Hazare at Adelaide.

The next time India toured Australia was 20 years later under the Nawab of Pataudi. The series was a complete washout with Australia winning the 4 test series 4-0.

The dismal story of India's tours down under continued and India never won a series. Even a team led by Sachin Tendulkar was beaten 3-0 in 1998.

The only time India came close to winning was when the Indian team under Saurav Ganguly shared the series in 2004. This time its a different ball game and Euro Sport has reported that India is on the verge of a historic win after 70 years of playing cricket in Australia.
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