Former Australian captain and legendary batter Ricky Ponting has shared his predictions for the highly anticipated five-match Test series between India and Australia. The 2024-25 edition of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy is set to kick off on November 22 in Perth, with the following matches scheduled in Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne, and Sydney.
Ponting, Australia’s all-time leading run-scorer in Tests and ODIs, foresees a 3-1 series victory for Australia. He believes that while India has the potential to secure a win in one of the matches, the Australians are poised to end India’s recent dominance and reclaim the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, which they haven’t held in a decade.
“I think India will win a Test match somewhere through the five Test matches,” Ricky Ponting shared on The ICC Review. “But I still think now, Australia probably look a bit more settled, a bit more experienced, and we know that they’re a very hard team to beat at home. So, I’ll stick with the 3-1,” he added.
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Ponting initially made this prediction in August, following Australia’s victory in the 2023 World Test Championship (WTC), and he remains confident in his assessment. The last time Australia defeated India in a home Border-Gavaskar series was in 2014-15.
However, in the previous two home series, India triumphed, winning 2-1 on both occasions, much to the disappointment of Australian fans. Australia currently sits atop both the ICC Test rankings and the WTC 2023-25 points table, having won four out of five home Tests in the current WTC cycle. India, meanwhile, heads into the series with setbacks, having been whitewashed by New Zealand in a shocking 3-0 defeat at home.
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This marked India’s first-ever home series whitewash in a multi-Test series, putting their WTC final qualification at risk. For India to ensure a top-two finish and secure a spot in the WTC 2025 final at Lord’s, they would need a dominant series win over Australia, ideally with a 4-0 or 5-0 scoreline.
