Australia leveled the series with a commanding 10-wicket victory over India in the pink-ball Test at the Adelaide Oval. Pat Cummins’ five-wicket haul highlighted their dominance, as India crumbled to 175 in their second innings, folding within the first hour of the third morning. Mitchell Starc set the tone by removing Rishabh Pant for 28 with a perfectly pitched delivery in the day’s first over.
Australia needed just 19 runs to win, and Usman Khawaja and Nathan McSweeney quickly sealed the chase within four overs before the interval. India had earlier been on the brink of an innings defeat, with Cummins unleashing a barrage of short balls that dismissed R Ashwin, Harshit Rana, and Nitish Kumar Reddy. Travis Head further thrilled the crowd with a diving catch to dismiss Mohammed Siraj, who had exchanged heated words with him on day two.
Reddy offered brief resistance with a valiant 42 off 47 balls, including a six off Cummins. However, his aggressive ramp shot ended up in the hands of fine third, making him India’s top scorer for the third time in his debut series. Despite his efforts, India faced only 81 overs across both innings, marking the shortest pink-ball Test in Australia and the shortest between the two teams.
The Adelaide crowd of 33,184 celebrated as McSweeney struck two boundaries during the chase, while Head received the Player-of-the-Match award for his match-defining 140 in the first innings. Australia bounced back impressively from their 295-run loss in Perth, delivering a near-perfect performance to set the stage for an exciting remainder of the series. Cummins, back to his best, led the charge with relentless precision and intensity.
