Fri Jan 03 08:22:41 UTC 2025: ## India Falters on Day 1 in Sydney Test, Australia Strikes Back
**Sydney, Australia** – Day one of the fifth and final unofficial Border-Gavaskar Trophy Test match between India and Australia ended with India on the back foot after being bowled out for 185 and Australia finishing the day at 9/1.
India, winning the toss and electing to bat first, struggled against the Australian pace attack. Rishabh Pant top-scored for India with 40 runs, while Jasprit Bumrah provided a late flourish with a 22-run cameo including three boundaries and a six. Other notable contributors were Ravindra Jadeja (26) and Washington Sundar (14). However, the Indian batting line-up crumbled under pressure, with Scott Boland taking four wickets, Mitchell Starc claiming three, and Pat Cummins and Nathan Lyon each taking two.
The Indian innings saw several early wickets, including KL Rahul (4), Yashasvi Jaiswal (10), and Shubman Gill (20). Virat Kohli also made a relatively low score of 17.
Australia’s reply got off to a shaky start when Usman Khawaja was dismissed by Bumrah for just 2 runs. The final over of the day saw a heated exchange between Bumrah and Sam Conners, who ended the day unbeaten on 7 runs.
With the limited-overs players returning home and injuries affecting the squad, there were several changes for both teams. Shubman Gill and Prasidh Krishna replaced Rohit Sharma and Akashdeep in the Indian lineup, while Beau Webster replaced Mitchell Marsh for Australia.
The match continues on day two, with Australia needing to build on their relatively small lead and capitalise on India’s first innings struggles.
First Piper 