India came and conquered Perth emphatically as Australia were rolled over in the 1st Test match of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy by a huge 295-run margin. 

After a disappointing first innings where the Australian batters folded like a deck of cards in front of some exquisite red ball bowler– at one point reeling at 47-6 – before some rear guard action from the tailenders took their total to 104. 

The Indians, led by swashbuckling opener, Yashasvi Jaiswal, who scored a brilliant 161 in this debut test in Australia, supported by a strong 77 by KL Rahul and Virat Kohli scoring his 30th century to take India’s lead to a massive 533. 

The Aussies, in reply to the monumental task in front of them, were decimated to 12 for 3 inside five overs as Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj wrecked havoc through the Australian top order. The second over of Day 4 saw experienced opener Usman Khawaja sky one from Siraj, as Australia were staring down the barrel of a humiliating defeat at home. 

Steven Smith, following his Golden Duck in the 1st innings, fought hard and held one end up before a peach of a delivery by Siraj got the better of the former Aussies skipper. Travis Head (89) and Alex Carey (36) delayed the inevitable just that bit longer as India bowled out the Australian for 235 in the 2nd innings inside just 60 overs. 

It took India less than 110 overs to bowl out Australia twice in the same Test match. 

However, looking back at Australia’s recent home series against West Indies this season, as well as a Test series in New Zealand, their collapse against India looks more like a continuation of a worrisome pattern rather than a blip in performance. 

The Cracks Begin To Emerge

Against the West Indies, in their 1st Test Series of 2024, the Australians batting second posted a total of 283, in reply to West Indies’ 188. However, apart from a brilliant 119 by Travis Head and a resilient 45 by Usman Khawaja, the entire top and middle order failed to produce any innings of substance. West Indies debutant Shamar Joseph troubling the Aussies in particular. 

Although Australia managed to win the 1st Test comfortably, the fragility in their batting order was glaring. Then came the second day-night pink ball Test in Gabba, where the West Indies posted a commendable 311 in the 1st innings. In reply, Australia were 24-4 by the end of the 5th over as Kemar Roach and Alzarri Joseph ran through the Australian top and middle order. 

Some counter-attacking cricket from the Australian lower order saw Pat Cummins declare the innings at 289 for 9, to use the pink ball under the lights with their full might. And kudos to the Australian seamers as they bowled out WI in 72.3 overs for 193, giving themselves a target of 216 to chase down and win the series 2-0 (2). 

Unlike their 1st innings, Australia were cruising at 113 for 2, with Steven Smith batting at 23 and Cameroon Green leading the charge with 42 off 72 balls. Then came Shamar Joseph and turned the game on its head. The Caribbean pacer cleaned up both Green and Head in successive deliveries as the Windies saw a way through. 

Over the next 15 overs, Australia collapsed to 175-8, needing 31 runs with just two wickets in hand. In the end, West Indies registered a famous victory by 8 runs, their first win in Australian soil in over 24 years. 

Papering Over The Cracks

After wrapping up both the ODI (3-0) and T20I (2-1) series against the West Indies, the Kangaroos made the trip across to neighbours New Zealand for three T20Is and a two-Tests series.

Following a 3-0 drubbing of the hosts in the T20Is, Pat Cummins and his men sealed a two-nil Test series victory, however, not everything was as smooth as it seemed. 

Batting first in the 1st Test, Australia were at one point struggling at 176 for 6 before an unbeaten 174 from Cameron Green took them to a competitive 383. In their second innings, Australia collapsed from 127 for 4 to 164-allout inside 13 overs. 

The same pattern continued in the 2nd Test at Christchurch where Australia were bowled out for 256 in 68 overs. 

While chasing a total of 279 in the second innings, the Australian top order collapsed to 34 for 4, before some rear guard action from Mitchell Marsh (80) and Alex Carey (98*) took them home with a 3-wicket victory. 

Warning Signs

If we look at how the batters in the current BGT squad have fared this year in Test cricket, the readings are grim! 

Including Nathan McSweeney’s two innings from the 1st Test in Perth, Australia’s top seven have played a combined total of 60 innings. The likes of Usman Khawaja, Steven Smith, Marnus Labuschange, Travis Head, Mitchell Marsh and Alex Carey managed a total of eight 50+ individual scores and the one solitary 100+ score by Travis Head. That’s an alarming stat. 

Moreover, none of these batters have accumulated more than 300 runs in their last 10 Test innings. Steven Smith has 188 runs in 10 innings, with his 91 not-out against West Indies being his solitary 50+ contribution. Marnus Labuschange, Australia’s #4, has 123 runs from 10 innings, and more alarmingly except his 90 against New Zealand at Christchurch, the 30-year-old has failed to cross the 10-run mark in all nine other occasions. 

Furthermore, looking at the average age of all these players, this is one of the oldest Australian Test teams in history. 

For a team that has stayed together for the best part of over half a decade, there are certain individuals who look past their prime or are in some of the worst phases of their careers. Moreover, the recent collapses and inconsistency speaks of a wider issue in the Australian camp than just their ages. 

Like most international teams, Australia are struggling to create a balance between Test and T20 cricket. After playing the two-Test series against New Zealand in Feb-Mar, they are playing India after an eight-month gap, although they did play a lot of ODI and T20I games in between. 

In their last 10 Test innings, the Aussies have only batted for more than 100 overs only once, and that too was followed by a collapse in the second innings of that Test match. 

Thus, age, technical frailty, temperament, and adaptability are some of the key points that stand out in assessing Australia’s recent struggles in red ball cricket.