Melbourne [Australia], December 25: Indian pacer Jasprit Bumrah and all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja are poised to continue their pursuit of major milestones during the fourth Test against Australia at the MCG, starting Thursday. Bumrah is just six wickets shy of claiming his 200th Test wicket, while Jadeja is closing in on 600 international wickets.
With the series level at 1-1, both teams are gearing up for the much-anticipated Boxing Day Test, aiming to secure a crucial series lead to strengthen their case for a spot in the ICC World Test Championship final.
Bumrah, currently with 194 wickets in 43 Tests at an impressive average of 19.52, is poised to become the 12th Indian bowler to reach the 200-wicket mark. He has been in exceptional form throughout the series, leading the wicket tally with 21 wickets in three matches at an average of 10.90, including best figures of 6/76 and two five-wicket hauls. Against Australia, Bumrah has taken 53 wickets in 10 Tests at an average of 17.15, with three five-wicket hauls and a best of 6/33.
Meanwhile, Jadeja is just seven wickets away from becoming the fifth Indian bowler to join the elite 600-wicket club in international cricket. The left-arm spinner has taken 593 wickets in 349 international matches, with 17 five-wicket hauls and best figures of 7/42. Despite being wicketless in this series, Jadeja has a strong record against Australia, having claimed 89 wickets in 18 Tests against them at an average of 20.35, with best figures of 7/42 and five five-wicket hauls.
The Australia XI for the upcoming Test is as follows: Usman Khawaja, Sam Konstas, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith, Travis Head, Mitch Marsh, Alex Carey (wk), Pat Cummins (c), Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, Scott Boland.
India’s squad for the fourth and fifth Tests includes: Rohit Sharma (C), Jasprit Bumrah (VC), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant (WK), Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel (WK), Ravindra Jadeja, Mohd. Siraj, Akash Deep, Prasidh Krishna, Harshit Rana, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar, Devdutt Padikkal, and Tanush Kotian.