"India will have to dismiss Australia under 200 runs for them to win the match" - Sunil Gavaskar
Former skipper Sunil Gavaskar has said that India will have to restrict Australia to a score under 200 runs in their second innings of the Brisbane Test to entertain any thoughts of winning the match.
At the moment, the fourth and final Test of the 2020/21 Border-Gavaskar Trophy is intriguingly poised. Australia have a lead of 54 runs with all second-innings wickets in hand and two days of play left.
India staged a grand comeback on the third day of the Test at the Gabba, with Washington Sundar and Shardul Thakur stitching together a record seventh-wicket partnership of 123 to give Australia a lead of just 33 runs.
During a post-match discussion on the Sony Sports network, Zaheer Khan felt India had taken a strong grip on the match after the day's play on a Brisbane surface that is considered tough for all visiting teams.
He asked Sunil Gavaskar if he still feels all three results are possible or an Australian win is beyond the realms of possibility.
The former Indian opener responded by noting that Australia already has a lead going into day four, and India may not find it easy to chase a target on the fifth day if the pitch has inconsistent bounce.
"Australia has taken the lead and if the play happens on the fifth day, you also know that the wicket can be up and down at times. So, the Indian batsmen could have a few more problems on the fifth day and they will be under pressure as well," said Sunil Gavaskar.
Sunil Gavaskar pointed out that Ajinkya Rahane and the Indian bowlers will have to restrict the flow of runs on the fourth day.
He singled out David Warner, who has already got off to an explosive start, as the Aussie batsman the visitors need to be wary of.
"So it is necessary that the Indian bowlers on the fourth day tomorrow do not give too many runs. The captaincy should be good so that the Australian batsmen, especially David Warner, are not given opportunities to hit boundaries. If that happens, we can save the match," Gavaskar continued.
Sunil Gavaskar added that India will have to bowl out Australia for under 200 if they want to win the match, and with it the series.
"But to win the match, India will have to dismiss Australia under 200 runs."
"It looks like the Australian bowlers are mentally tired" - Sunil Gavaskar
Zaheer Khan also asked Sunil Gavaskar if he felt the Australian bowlers were demoralized, as they were not able to get rid of the Indian tail.
Gavaskar noted that the Aussie quicks looked exhausted and were bowling all over the place when India's last-wicket pair was at the crease.
"Yes, the bowlers were looking a little tired. And in the end when Siraj and Natarajan were batting, what can you say about the bowling at that time. They were required to bowl straight at the stumps and they were bowling here and there," observed Sunil Gavaskar.
Sunil Gavaskar signed off by stating that the Aussie bowlers looked mentally drained as well, apart from their physical exertions.
"So, it looks like the Australian bowlers are mentally tired as well."
Australia looked dejected when Sundar and Thakur were bailing India out of trouble with their fighting partnership.
The Kangaroos would also be feeling the pinch as they have fielded the same bowlers in all four Tests, especially following their futile efforts on the final day of the third Test in Sydney.