History
Before the trophy was renamed, India and Australia had faced each other in 50 test matches, with Australia winning 24 of those matches and India winning only 8, with 18 matches being drawn. The series was then renamed and the first Border-Gavaskar trophy was played in October 1996, with India winning the sole test match. India went on to have a better head-to-head record once the trophy was renamed, with 20 wins in 48 tests, with Australia winning 18 tests and the rest 10 being draws.
In the most recent series in 2018/19, India recorded their first ever series win Down Under, with a historic 2-1 win to take the trophy home.
Team News
The Australians have picked a formidable squad for this test series:
Tim Paine (c), Joe Burns, Pat Cummins, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Michael Neser, James Pattinson, Will Pucovski, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Mitchell Swepson, Matthew Wade, David Warner, Sean Abbott, Moises Henriques, Marcus Harris.
David Warner is still nursing a groin injury that kept him out of the T20 series, and will miss this match. He is expected to return for the next match. Moises Henriques has been added to the squad as cover for Cameron Green, who has a few niggles. The batting will be held together by the brilliant duo of Smith and Labuschane, while Lyon, Starc and Cummins will be the key men with the pink ball.
The Indians have selected an interesting bunch of players, mostly from the IPL, for this series:
Virat Kohli (Captain), Mayank Agarwal, Prithvi Shaw, KL Rahul, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane (vice-captain), Hanuma Vihari, Shubman Gill, Wriddhiman Saha (wicket-keeper), Rishabh Pant (wicket-keeper), Jasprit Bumrah, Mohd. Shami, Umesh Yadav, Navdeep Saini, Kuldeep Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja, R. Ashwin, Mohd. Siraj.
Virat Kohli will be leaving the tour after the first test due to a compassionate leave, and will be looking to set the tone before leaving. Mayank Agarwal and Prithvi Shaw are the designated openers as Rohit Sharma will miss this series due to a lack of fitness. Pujara, Rahane and Vihari are in charge of the middle order. Bumrah, Ashwin and Shami are the main bowlers.
Betting Preview, Picks And Predictions
To Win The Match
Australia are the favourites to win this match at 1.66. They have a solid squad and even without David Warner are expected to pile on a huge amount of runs, while their bowling attack is as lethal as it gets. India to win has odds of 3.00, and if Virat Kohli has his way before leaving, that could be possible. The match to end in a draw has odds of 7.50
Top Team Batsman In The First Innings
The Royal Challengers Bangalore star Virat Kohli is the favourite from India to be their top batsman in the first innings at 3.30. He is followed by last series’ top scorer Pujara at 4.33 and opener Mayank Agarwal at 5.50.
In Warner’s absence, a flurry of top order batsmen have the following odds : Steve Smith is the obvious favourite to be Australia’s top batsman at 3.10. He is followed by the ever consistent Labuschane at 4.33.
Highest Opening Partnership In The First Innings
Both these teams are equally poised at 1.90 to have the highest opening partnership in the first innings. This is because neither of them have their permanent openers available for this match. Mayank and Shaw are a new pairing, while the poor form of Joe Burns means Australia aren’t very confident of a solid opening pair either.
Top Team Bowler
Pat Cummins is the favourite to be the top bowler at 3.40, with his searing deliveries expected to make Indian batters tremble. Josh Hazelwood really troubled the Indian batsmen in the previous series, specially Kohli, and he is at 3.60 to be the top bowler. Lyon is 5.50 to be the top bowler.
Jasprit Bumrah leads India’s bowling contingent at 3.00, followed by Shami at 3.25 and veteran spinner Ashwin at 5.00.
Individual Player Betting
- Virat Kohli to score more than 90.5 runs over both innings has odds of 1.83, which is a tempting bet as he would like to continue his current form and build on his impressive test record before leaving. Steve Smith to score more than 93.5 runs has odds of 1.72. He is the best test batsman in the world and would be looking to maintain that reputation.
- Mitchell Starc to take 6 or more wickets has odds of 1.83, which is very attractive as he averages more than that in Test cricket. Bumrah to take 6 or more wickets has odds of 2.10, which is attractive as he was the leading wicket taker in the previous series between these two.
Our Top Betting Picks
- India to win the match @3.00
- India to have the Highest Opening Partnership @1.79
- Lyon to be Australia’s top bowler in the first innings @5.50
