The highly anticipated Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2024 is set to begin on November 22, with India and Australia gearing up for an intense series. The stakes are high, as both teams aim to make their mark in this prestigious Test series.
India’s Bid to Win For Third Consecutive Time In Australia
India will be eyeing a third win on the trot, a feat they have never achieved before. India looks to extend their success from a 2018-19 and 2020-21 series win. The Australians, however, are looking to put an end to their opponents’ reign and regain the title.
Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024: Full Schedule
| Test | Date | Venue | Start Time (IST) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st Test | November 22 | Opus Stadium, Perth | 7:50 AM |
| 2nd Test (Day-Night) | December 6 | Adelaide | 9:30 AM |
| 3rd Test | December 14 | Gabba, Brisbane | 5:50 AM |
| 4th Test (Boxing Day Test) | December 26 | Melbourne | 5:00 AM |
| 5th Test (New Year’s Test) | January 3 | Sydney | 5:00 AM |
India Vs Australia: Full Squads
India: Rohit Sharma (C), Jasprit Bumrah (VC), Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Mohammad Shami, Prasidh Krishna, Mohammed Siraj, Shubman Gill, Rishabh Pant (Wk), Dhruv Jurel (Wk), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sarfaraz Khan, Harshit Rana, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar.
Australia: Pat Cummins (C), Scott Boland, Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Starc, Steve Smith, Travis Head, Marnus Labuschagne, Usman Khawaja, Alex Carey (Wk), Josh Inglis (Wk), Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Marsh, Nathan McSweeney.
World Test Championship On Stake
The series holds additional significance for India, as they need to win all four Tests to secure a direct entry into the World Test Championship final, scheduled for June 2025 at Lord’s. A flawless performance in the series would ensure their place in cricket’s ultimate showdown.
Australia A Strong Opponent For India
Australia has not won a home Test series against India since the 2014-15 season. Although, there were losses in 2018-19 and 2020-21. Australia is no less capable than their counterpart. Nevertheless, during the same period, Australia had pulled off the win both in the World Test Championship final and the 50-over World Cup final of 2023. Thus, this Border-Gavaskar of 2024 is somewhat interestingly delineated because both teams enter the series with the highest contrasts in the latest set of successes.
Is Indian Team Strong Enough To Face The Aussies?
India will be playing without skipper Rohit Sharma, who is out due to personal reasons for the 1st Test, in his absence Jasprit Bumrah will be leading the squad. While Shubman Gill is out of the first Test due to a finger fracture. To make up for the blanks, Devdutt Padikkal is likely to be the batting backup from the India A team. Even though Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill will be unavailable team India has young talent and experience of marquee players which will surely make a balanced team.
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This series promises to be an exciting and historic contest in which India and Australia give their best on the field. Thrilling cricket can be expected from these giants as they clash to clinch the ultimate prize in Test cricket.
