Australia, India Settle for Draw as WTC Final Quest Heats Up

Attention now shifts to the final two matches of Australia's home series against India, as a weather-impacted draw in Brisbane has left the race for next year's World Test Championship (WTC) final tantalizingly open.

Brisbane's unpredictable December weather brought frustration to both sides as they sought an unlikely victory on Wednesday. Persistent bad weather around the Gabba led to both captains shaking hands just after the scheduled tea break on the final day, ending the match in a draw.

Australia had set India a challenging target of 275 for victory after declaring their second innings at 89/7, leaving the visitors with a minimum of 56 overs to chase down the target and take a 2-1 series lead. However, with the rain clouds gathering, India had only managed to reach 8/0 in reply before the weather forced the match to a halt.

Earlier, India were bowled out for 260 in their first innings, with Akash Deep becoming the final wicket to fall. As the weather cleared, Australia seized the opportunity to score quick runs, but they found little success against India’s seamers. Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, and Deep all bowled effectively to restrict Australia's batters, with Pat Cummins, the Australian captain, dismissed for a quickfire 22 before the declaration.

Despite Australia’s best efforts to push for a result, persistent storms in the area led to the match being called off after tea. As a result, both teams had to settle for four points each in the race to feature in the ICC WTC final at Lord's in 2025.

Australia remains in second place in the WTC standings with a points percentage of 58.89, just ahead of India, who are in third with 55.88 percent. South Africa continues to lead with a points percentage of 63.33, firmly in the driving seat for a spot in the one-off Test in June 2025. Australia and India now face a crucial battle in their upcoming Boxing Day Test in Melbourne and the New Year Test in Sydney to keep their hopes alive for a WTC final berth.