India’s star player Rishabh Pant had a tough outing on the field as he sustained twelve body blows during the opening day of the fifth Test at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) in Sydney. Despite fighting hard, Pant got out off Scott Boland after scoring a gritty 40 runs.
Pant came out to bat after the lunch break and Mitchell Starc welcomed him by hitting on his body. In the 35th over of India’s innings, Pant was looking to get rid of a short delivery of Starc but then ended up receiving it on his arm. The Delhi-based player kept suffering body blows and remained unbeaten until the tea break, adding crucial 48 runs with Ravindra Jadeja. It was in the 57th over of the game, when Pant got out. Scott Boland ran hard and bowled a short delivery where Pant miscued it and Australian skipper Pat Cummins took an easy catch at the mid-wicket region.
Scott Boland picked up his 50th Test wicket… and nearly had a hat-trick too! #AUSvIND | #MilestoneMoment nrmainsurance pic.twitter.com/M5PTfgJnL0 — cricket.com.au (cricketcomau) January 3, 2025
After the wicket of Pant, Nitish Kumar Reddy, who scored a century in the Boxing Day Test, walked out to bat. Boland surprised Reddy on the very first ball and as a result, he departed for a golden duck.
Earlier, the Indian team won the toss and opted to bat against Australia in Sydney. The likes of Yashasvi Jaiswal and KL Rahul started the proceedings for India but then failed to make a partnership.
Australia Squad: Pat Cummins (C), Alex Carey (WK), Usman Khawaja, Nathan McSweeney, Marnus Labuschagne, Steven Smith, Travis Head, Mitchell Marsh, Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood, Josh Inglis, Scott Boland.
India Squad: Rohit Sharma (C), Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Devdutt Padikkal, Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant(w), Dhruv Jurel, Nitish Reddy, Ravichandran Ashwin, Akash Deep, Jasprit Bumrah(vc), Mohammed Siraj, Sarfaraz Khan. , Prasidh Krishna, Ravindra Jadeja, Harshit Rana, Washington Sundar, Abhimanyu Easwaran.