Debutant all-rounder Beau Webster believes playing against India pacer Jasprit Bumrah will be an enormous challenge for the Australian pacers on the seamer-friendly SCG pitch. 

India were bowled out for 185 before Bumrah dismissed opener Usman Khawaja off the last ball of the day to Bumrah to leave Australia on 9/1 at stumps. 

“Think there’s definitely a method to go about batting on this wicket. But Jasprit is a world class bowler and no doubt he is going to challenge our whole batting group. He is phenomenal with his lengths and lines, it is going to be tough on a wicket that will offer a fair bit for him,” Webster said on Friday.

Webster also praised Australia’s effort in restricting India to a sub-200 total on a track conducive to seam bowling.

“It was a pretty seamer-friendly track and most of the day the ball stayed pretty new with the grass coverage. It is not an abrasive square either. So, the plan was to bowl a little bit fuller and entice those front foot defences and front foot drives.

“Thought Scotty (Boland) was excellent, he’s been unbelievable since he came back into the team and saw why he’s a world class bowler. Thought all the bowlers were really good today to bowl them out for 200.”

Webster said the degree of seam movement for a few deliveries was way more pronounced and hence they beat the bat regularly.

“There were a couple of unplayable balls, when it seams that much it can be hard to get a wicket at times. We saw a nice-ish partnership (between Ravindra Jadeja and Rishabh Pant), where we struggled to get a breakthrough through the sheer seam movement. We beat the bat a lot but couldn’t find the edge.”

The 31-year-old was all praise for Boland and said the pacer can find a way to get wickets on any surface and when there is help on offer, he is on par with the best in business.

“If there’s anything in the wicket he finds it and if there’s nothing in the wicket he still manages to find a way through,” the lanky Tasmanian said.

“He’s been fantastic this whole series when he’s got his chance, he’s relentless. I think it’s his line and length and his natural angle that makes it really hard for right-handers, but when we see him go round the wicket to left-handers it’s impressive stuff.”

Webster, who took a good catch in the slips to dismiss Virat Kohli, found Boland’s bowling enjoyable.

“It’s great to watch from the third slip today, the amount of movement he gets and how accurate he is and how challenging he is for both left and right handers. He’s been superb, he can bowl long spells and back up the next day.

“He’s a ripping bloke so everyone is stoked when he does well which seems to be all the time at the moment.”

Webster said he was happy to put his nondescript village, Snug in Tasmania, a part of the cricketing map.

“My phone has been blowing off with messages and calls. It is a proud moment especially since I come from a small place and it is nice to put it on the map,” he added.

Rohit Sharma’s decision to ‘opt out’ of the ongoing fifth and final Test against Australia was bizarre as it sends wrong signals and the India captain deserved ‘more respect’ from the team management, reckoned former India opener Navjot Singh Sidhu.

Grappling with poor form, Rohit pulled out of the Sydney Test, handing over the leadership duties to Jasprit Bumrah. The move also paved the way for Shubman Gill’s inclusion in the crucial match of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series.

“A Captain should never be dropped midstream nor given the option to opt out … sends wrong signals,” Sidhu said on X. 

Rohit, who missed the opening Test at Perth to be present for the birth of his second baby, scored only 31 runs across five innings in three Tests.

“Have seen Captains like Mark Taylor, Azharuddin etc persisted as captain for a year despite bad form … @ImRo45 deserved more respect and faith from the management … Bizarre coz it happened for the first time in Indian cricket history. Blunder — for a fallen lighthouse is more dangerous than a reef!,” he added.

After missing the Perth Test, Rohit returned for the pink-ball Test at Adelaide but didn’t look his old self,  struggling to execute even his trademark front foot pull shots.

The 37-year-old Rohit endured a tough time in Test cricket in 2024, accumulating just 619 runs in 26 innings across 14 matches, averaging 24.

Shubman Gill’s return to the Indian team didn’t go on expected lines as the batter perished playing a loose shot on Day 1 of the Sydney Test on Friday.

Gill’s bizarre dismissal was the big talking point of the morning session. The India No 3 had a war of words with Australians Marnus Labuschagne and Steve Smith before he shockingly gave spinner Nathan Lyon the charge off the last ball of the first session, which ended up in his strange dismissal.

Gill was dismissed for 20 to leave India reeling on 57/3 in 25 overs at lunch on the opening day.

Smith described how Australia’s mind games had disturbed Gill’s focus after he tried to slow down things towards the end of the session.

The India No 3 went down to tap the pitch before facing the last ball from Lyon. Smith, at slip, complained to the umpire as to why he was not getting on with his batting before he called out to tbe batter.

‘Easy, got it in easy! He needs to call for the ‘sprain,’ Labuschange was the first to get on Gill’s nerves.

Smith joined in quipping: ‘Oi, let’s play!’

Gill was not amused as he told Smith: ‘You take your time, Smithy nobody says anything.’

Smith was not holding back ‘Just play mate. Let’s play’ while Labuschagne added: ‘Take your time son.’

It was the Australians, who ended with the last laugh. Gill, who seemed upset at Smith, played a loose shot to gift his wicket away. He came down the pitch to defend the spinner but Lyon foxed him the slider which went straight on and took the edge with Smith taking a comfortable catch at slip.

‘Shubman was trying to take his time there, (and) it probably played into our hands. He actually said something to me like ‘I will take my time’ but he decided to run at the last ball and I think he was trying to launch him. That happens,’ Smith told commentator Isa Guha at the lunch break.

The manner of Gill’s dismissal won’t certainly impress Coach Gautam Gambhir, who had issued a stern warning to his team after losing the fourth Test in Melbourne.

The coach expressed dissatisfaction with players ‘doing their own thing in the name of their ‘natural game’, instead of playing according to the situation.’