Rishabh Pant & Mohammed Siraj on the verge of topping elite lists at Gabba ahead of BGT 2024-25 3rd Test
India stars Rishabh Pant and Mohammed Siraj will be in the limelight during the third Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2024-25 Test, which will begin at the Gabba on Saturday, December 14. After winning the opening Test in Perth, India faced a tough defeat in Adelaide.
With the series now squared 1-1, the visitors will be keen to script a comeback at the Gabba, a venue where they recorded a historic three-wicket win against the hosts in 2021.
However, it will remain a challenging task as this remains India's only win at the Gabba out of a total of seven Tests that they have played at the venue. Ahead of the third BGT 2024-25 Test, India's key players Rishabh Pant and Mohammed Siraj are on the verge of creating history and topping elite lists.
Pant has a total of 112 runs at the Gabba in Test cricket. Motganhalli Laxminarsu Jaisimha leads the charts as the Indian batter with the most runs at the venue in Tests, having scored 175 runs. Rishabh Pant is just 63 runs away from topping this elite list that involves big names like Murali Vijay (171 runs), Ajinkya Rahane (152 runs), Sourav Ganguly (144 runs), Cheteshwar Pujara (142 runs), MAK Pataudi (122 runs), and Sunil Gavaskar (116 runs).
Meanwhile, pacer Mohammed Siraj also has the chance to top an elite list. Siraj has picked up six Test wickets at the Gabba and can become India's leading wicket-taker in Tests at the venue. He needs just three wickets to top the list. Currently, Siraj is tied with Ishant Sharma (six wickets), Madan Lal (six wickets), and Bishan Singh Bedi (six wickets). Only Shardul Thakur (seven wickets) and Erapalli Prasanna (eight wickets) are ahead of Siraj.
Can Rishabh Pant and Mohammed Siraj replicate their Gabba heroics?
India's only Test win at the Gabba came in 2021 where they produced a famous performance to breach the fortress. Rishabh Pant and Mohammed Siraj delivered crucial performances in that Test to help India seal a memorable win.
In Australia's second innings, Siraj picked up a five-wicket haul that included the big wickets of Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith, and Matthew Wade. India were set a stiff target of 328 runs to win the game when an unbeaten 89 off 138 deliveries from Rishabh Pant saw the visitors overhaul the target with three wickets to spare.
India are under pressure going into the third BGT 2024-25 Test at the very same venue. The visitors will be keen to put up a similar display as that of 2021. That said, Pant and Siraj would be keen to replicate their heroics from that famous win once again.