With the 2024 T20 World Cup done, India's upcoming five-match Test series in Australia is arguably the most anticipated event left in the cricketing calendar for this year. Matches between the two sides have decided the biggest of titles in recent years making the rivalry itself a reason for the contest to be an interesting one. Add to this the fact that Australia are looking to win the Border-Gavaskar Trophy for the first time in nearly a decade and avoid a hat-trick of Test series defeats at home to India and it might be safe to anticipate a feisty tour filled with incidents.

India recorded their first-ever series win in Australia in 2018/19. They then incredibly followed it up with another win in 2020/21, despite most of their first-team regulars being ruled out over the course of the tour due to injuries and other reasons. Rishabh Pant's aggressive batting was a key factor in this, particularly in the last Test where he bludgeoned his way to an unbeaten 89 and led India to a historic victory at the Gabba. Former Australia batter Matthew Hayden said that he would be interested in how Pant fares this time and how India's batters in general will approach the hosts' bowling lineup.

"Guys like Rishabh Pant have got a muscle memory and the thirst for victory. He was such a key player last time he played there and the Australian public loved him as well, because of the nature of the way he played his game," Hayden said at the CEAT Cricket Awards.

"It was exciting. It was innovative. It was just fresh and good. Then you have got your old stewards, like Virat Kohli, (he) will want to make an impression again. From a batting point of view, I'm excited to see how India have that strategy to take on the Australian conditions," Hayden added.

Australia looking to break out of a rut

The last time Australia beat India in a bilateral Test series was in 2014/15. Like s teams in the world, Australia have since never really come close to challenging India's hegemony at home but more importantly, there were a number of dubious inflicted on them at home in the previous two series that they hosted.

The 2018/19 series marked the first time that Australia lost a Test series at home to any Asian side. That series did come in the immediate aftermath of the infamous 2018 ball tampering scandal which meant that Australia could avail the services of Steve Smith or David Warner. However, the tables were turned in terms of personnel in 2020/21 and Australia ended up losing that series as well. The hosts fielded a full-strength squad for all games and India were left bruised after the first Test, which they lost by 10 wickets after being all out for 36 runs in their second innings.

Captain and talisman Virat Kohli left the tour after that for the birth of his first child while key pacer Mohammed Shami was ruled out with an injury. Over the course of the series, India lost the likes of Jasprit Bumrah, Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja to injury. And yet, India recorded a stirring win at the MCG and an incredible draw in Sydney. They then became the first team since Viv Richards' world-beating West Indies in 1988 to beat Australia in a Test match at the Gabba and thus won the series 2-1.

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