Australia vs India, 4th Test at Sydney, IND in AUS, Jan 03 2019 - Ball by Ball Commentary

3.05pm Well, that's it from Sydney. India fans, enjoy this occasion. Been too long coming. As for all ye Australia fans, there's an opportunity for amends against Sri Lanka. But before that, the Australia-India ODI series is coming up, and those contests have always been crackers over the years. We'll see you in five days for the ODIs where MS Dhoni will be back behind the stumps. Till then, on behalf of everyone at ESPNcricinfo, this is Sreshth Shah signing off. Enjoy your monday!

Kabaddi fans: The sixth season of the Pro Kabaddi League was bigger and better than ever before and it had plenty of surprises including World Cup-winning captain Anup Kumar's retirement. Read more here.

2.57pm Time for the press now. Kohli takes the trophy and does another photo session with the team. Now the support staff join in as well, with physio Patrick Farhart sticking his head out from behind. Virat's wife, actress and producer Anushka Sharma, also comes into the field. Happy faces everywhere! Jadeja can't stop jumping on the podium. The celebrations continue as Kohli takes a few more photos. R Ashwin is hugging his two children. The fast-bowling trio of Shami, Ishant and Bumrah pose for a photo as well.

2.55pm The great Allan Border finally hands Virat Kohli the trophy, and the first thing he does is kiss the orb at the top. The rest of his team joins in and he hands Mayank Agarwal, the team's newest member, the trophy. They pose together before Mayank raises the trophy above his head. The crowd roars and there's smiles all around at the SCG. Kohli does another little jig, as Sunil Gavaskar says on TV: "I have tears in my eyes". Don't forget, half the trophy is named after him.

2.41pm Time for the presentation, where Isa Guha leads the coverage. A huge roar from the crowd when she announces India as series winners.

Virat Kohli, the winning captain is next to make his way up. He's congratulated by Allan Border before having a chat. He says: "Firstly, I want to say I've never been more proud of being part of a team, than this one right here. The culture we've built... our transition began right here, where I took over as captain, and I can't believe that after four years we've won here. Just one word to say, 'proud', to lead this team and it's an honour and privilege. The boys make the captain look good. By far, this is my biggest achievement. It's at the top of the pile. When we won the 2011 World Cup, I was the youngest member of the side. Saw everyone emotional there, but I didn't feel it. Here, after coming three times, this win means something else. The series win will give us a different identity, and what we've been able to achieve... something to be proud of. We spoke about our batting as a team, wanted to do the basics. The old, hard grind. Special mention to Pujara, he's been outstanding in the series, especially after his last time out in Australia. He's one guy willing to accept things, he works on his game, he's the nicest man around, and we feel happy for him. Special mention to Mayank Agarwal too, he stood up as a champion on Boxing Day. Speaks highly of his mindset, but as a batting group we all contributed. It's something that augurs well with the team. The way the bowlers have dictated and dominated, not here but also in England and SA, it's something I haven't seen before. Hats off to them, the way they've prepared, their fitness levels, and their mindset. They discuss how to take wickets, and then they dictate their plans to me. It's a revelation in Indian cricket, and something for the bowlers at home to learn. These guys will be looked up to for a long, long time, and they deserve to break the record of the great West Indian fast bowlers. This is just a stepping stone for us. The average age is quite low, but most importantly we had the belief: we had that in SA and in England, and when you're working in the right direction then God knows you're honest. We want to do the best for Indian cricket, and this is outstanding, but it's just a stepping stone. Australia are always going to be competitive. Every team goes through a transition, and their dominance kept world cricket exciting for so many years. I'm sure they'll regroup as a side and play some exciting cricket in the future. We all deserve to enjoy. The celebrations, I assure you, will run long. The boys are physically and mentally drained, and we have no more alarm clocks in the morning. And I want to mention about the crowd as well. They've been outstanding. They never let us feel we're playing away from home. And they deserve this feeling as much as we do."

Tim Paine, the losing captain walks up next. He says: "Have to tip our hat to India, we know how tough it is to win in India so congrats to Virat and Ravi because it's a huge achievement. Disappointed, definitely over the last two Tests. We had our chances in Adelaide, in Perth I thought we played some good cricket, but in Melbourne and Sydney, we've been outplayed. There's been some positives: some talent in this team, and it was good for our top six to play against potentially the world's best bowling line-up. We have Tests against Sri Lanka and then the Ashes, so this series was important. The message to everyone in domestic cricket is to keep scoring runs. We know there are guys outside of this group who want to come in. No illusions, we need to keep working hard. Cricket's a funny game and it can turn very quickly. I'll go home for a couple of days, and most of the guys will be going to the Big Bash for a bit. And then, we'll have an eye on for the series against Sri Lanka."

Cheteshwar Pujara is the Player of the Series for his 521 runs at an average of 74. Three tons for him. He receives two trophies. Isa Guha says, "a special mention to Jasprit Bumrah."

"It's a great feeling for all of us," says Pujara. "We've been working hard to win a series overseas, and winning in Australia has never been easy. And really pleased with my contribution. For me, the first hundred was special. Scoring a ton at Adelaide and going 1-0 up is what we were aiming for. As a batsman, I was just getting used to the pace and bounce, and apart from that, playing in South Africa and England has helped me improve my technique. For me, it's all about preparation and I was very well prepared. This is the best Indian side I have been part of. And I would also like to congratulate all our bowlers. We've had four bowlers, and it's not easy taking 20 wickets, so credit goes to all our fast bowlers and spinners..remarkable. I'll be playing some first-class cricket back home, and I'll play some county cricket during the IPL. But the next Test series is some 6-7 months away, it'll give me some time to prepare. I would like to play white-ball cricket, but Test cricket is my priority, and it always be so."

Ravi Kiran K Pe: "This win makes me feel prouder than the 2011 worldcup for the only reason of beating Australia in their own backyard. Its something special and going to be retained quite a while."

Tajender: "Monday Blues. Most of us are either in office /college / school. Missing the historic moment the we all were dreaming all these years. Congrats team India and thanKs cricinfo for bringing the live update."

Prasanna S: "What a remarkable turnaround of fortunes for Pujara. Not even part of the starting eleven in England and he scripted India's history here. Proves time and again Form is Temporary, Class is Permanent."

2.36pm The celebrations continue as Sudhir Kr Chaudhary, the tricolour-clad superfan, waves the Indian flag in the stands. The Indian team applauds the fans who turned up today. A much sombre mood in the Australian camp: they're hanging about near the ground.

Harshad Sardesh: "For our generation of fans, MSK Prasad opening the innings in Australia encapsulated everything... Guess life has come a full circle, he is the chairman of selectors when we win in australia!"

Something from our friends at ESPN.in: In the world of football, India had not won a single match at the AFC Asian Cup since 1964. That changed after 90 magical minutes against Thailand yesterday. Read more here.

2.30pm And play is called off! India win the Test series 2-1! Finally, it's official. After 72 years, India have beaten Australia down under. This game is officially drawn, but for what it's worth, the series winners dominated this Test as well. The presentation will happen super soon. Stay locked. You don't want to miss this. Live pictures show the Indians hugging it out in the dugout. Ishant, Rahane, Hardik, Pant... all of them jubilant. Pujara, like always, smiles in the background. Kohli finally walks out and leads the team handshakes. He meets Paine, and the rest of the Australians. Kohli and Kuldeep do a little jig as well, before the captain asks all his team-mates to join in. Fortnite fans, anyone?

Prashant Chawla: "As a person who is in an open relationship with cricket from last 20 years(when I was 6), this is an emotional moment which I will never ever forget. Congratulations to Team India and all the fans."

Lakshitha: "As a Sri Lankan fan, I would like to congratulate India for this historical series victory, and also to thank them for increasing the probability of a first Sri Lankan test victory on Aussie soil in the on coming series by demoralising the Aussie team. :-)"

Drew: "It's probably been said already, but the difference between India winning the series and Australia winning the series was about 30 runs. What a difference two players can make..."

Rushad "Anyone else's ears ringing with Chak De India right now? So proud of the country and this major achievement! "

Vinay: "In my lifetime, there is the worldcup 2011 win and then this. nothing comes close (not even the T20 WC win) to these 2 pinnacles of Indian Cricketing success.... "

Vishal: "My late grandpa would've been 95 today and jumping up and down right now. God I miss him today, more than ever! "

Muhammad Abbas : "Thank God rain arrived just a wee bit late and Indians manage to make Aussies bat again and become just a 2nd team in 31 years to do so and will always remain in record books as kohli was the captain... a fan of kohli from Pakistan..."

SUdha PRITam: "CONGATULATIONS!!!!!!!! TEAM INDIA.... i must be the first one do that.... plz publish this "

2.25pm The umpires are currently in the middle.

2.22pm Suketh : "Given that we have lost a little more than a session's play today and there is no hope for either team( read india) to secure a win from here, can the umpires call off the match and get on with the presentations? Is there a specific rule against calling off a match ahead of time? " -- tell all your friends that the game may be called off in under eight minutes. We should have the presentation soon after, if that happens. As for specific rule, no, there isn't any.

parag bhore: "This washout is frustrating , since we are talking about first memories... Chennai test 2004, India needed 220 odd runs on last day to level the series but it rained whole day, Aus won in India after 35 years"

2.10pm Update from Cricket Australia: "The match officials will be meeting with the groundstaff at 2:30pm local"

2.05pm By the way, we've recently begun a new series over at our digital magazine The Cricket Monthly. It's on the six types of T20 teams that exist today, and Part 1 is on the "big hitters". Check out how West Indies and other franchises learnt to dominate the format in this Tim Wigmore piece.

1.55pm Another update from Andrew McGlashan: "The rain looks quite set in now, the clouds have lowered. The India dressing room are doing their bit to entertain the small crowds which are huddled under the stands."

Kunal: "@Wilson, there's a test against Zimbabwe scheduled. " -- yep, India do play a one-off Test against Zimbabwe in March, but I highly doubt Bumrah will be playing that. Expect him to be rested considering he'll play the ODIs against Australia (starting Jan 12) too.

Dan: "Sean, 'may as well bring some young guys through' sounds like picking people on potential rather than peformance which is how we got in this mess. Don't pick guys who are averaging in the 20's or low thirties because you think they might get better in the future. Just pick the best 6 first class batsmen in the country. I don't care if they're 18, 25 or 33. If young guys are showing potential, that's great, when they get to the top 6 in the country pick them."

Tomek Holland : "Absolutely loving the push in the public to ditch Tim Paine, who along with Cummins, Khawaja & Lyon has been of the few who has done the job and looked competent. Blooding Carey as a bat could be a great way to ease him in to Test cricket, cannot be any worse than current middle order, but Paine has done nothing wrong. If only someone would pick some decent selectors."

Wilson: "It's a shame Bumrah will be stranded on 49 test wickets for at least 6 months now..!"

Gav: "@Peter R If you go back to 2001, when Australia was dominating and you expected them to win every match, they werent beating chumps. SA had Gibbs, Kirsten, Kallis, Boucher, Kluesner, Ntini, Pollock. SL had Jayasruiya, Jayawardena, Kaluwitarana, Vaas, Murali. England had 6 past/present/future Captains, and India had Laxman, Dravid, Ganguly, Tendulkar, and Kumble. Those werent weak teams they were beating. It was a glorious era all round, emphasizing just how good Australia was to dominate"

Rahul singh: "@Prabhanjan , I don't think ICC would think that trophy will fall down on players or players would not be able to identify the trophy due to dim light and faintest of drizzle. #FrustratedSpectater "

SeanTheMexican: "Hazlewood and Mitch Marsh are vice captains, and yet based on form, Marsh will be lucky to play another game for Aussie in any format. Head is a BBL captain, State captain, and has an excellent cricket brain. While they're rebuilding this team, they might as well bring through some young guys, which is why I'd stick with Labuschagne and Handscomb, and get rid of Shaun Marsh."

Michael Smith: "SeanTheMexican, that's not a bad side, but I don't see why Labuschagne is there. If you want a spinning allrounder, Maxwell is a better bowler AND batsman. If you want a top-order batsman, Burns is a much better choice. "

1.50pm SeanTheMexican: "Anyone want to talk squad for the SL tests? My XI would be Harris, Khawaja, Labuschagne, Head, Finch, Handscomb, Carey, Cummins, Starc, Lyon, Hazlewood. Travis Head would captain the side." -- I like the look of that, although breeding a new captain wouldn't by my plan. Paine's shown he has the character to lead the side, and Hazlewood is designated vice-captain remember?

Prabhanjan Bada: "Hopefully, the rains will relent to allow the presentation ceremony to happen outdoors. It will be a travesty of justice if Kohli is handed the trophy indoors considering the magnitude of achievement. "

Nitin: "Why named "Tea"? Somebody can opt for juices as well. It should be called refreshment or something like that. Btw what goes into the Menu of lunch for players? Its strict sporty diet?" -- Well, we *do* know the Englishmen started this game. What other beverage would they name the session break after, eh? By the way, here's a piece of nugget for you: in the early days of Test cricket, players would drink tea right on the ground! Club members would take kettles and cups into the middle so that the players could refresh themselves without even leaving the 22 yards. Steven Lynch writes more about it here.

January 7 has always been a special day in cricket. Head over to our #OnThisDay section and tell me what's your favourite moment from over the years?

1.38pm Lakshman Kumar: "How about the players coming out with a football and entertain the crowd with some game atleast. Poor fans have been patiently waiting since yesterday. They deserve some entertainment..!! " -- speaking of football, last night was a special one for India. They won their first game at the Asia Cup in almost 55 years after beating Thailand 4-1. Learn more here from our friends at ESPN.in.

JasonRob: "As it stands, this series is going to be remembered where no Australian batsmen has scored a century until otherwise if we see some play in the afternoon. "-- Would be the first time they couldn't score a ton in a home Test series of 4+ games.

Suyog: "Or at Nottingham this summer in England when England lost 10 wickets in a session against India..."

Parth: "Hope, the next update will not read "UMPIRES DECIDE TO TAKE AN EARLY TEA" !!!!! That would be the last nail in the coffin for me today !!!!!" -- Well, never lose hope. There have been instances of more than 10 wickets falling in a single session. Just go back to last year's India-Afghanistan Test.

1.10pm We should've started the post-lunch session about now, but alas, still drizzling. Covers are on as well.

"Who do you think will be chosen against Sri Lanka, will they drop the marsh brothers, and what bowlers will they use " -- well, Australia are trying to balance what they have with what they will get when the Smith-Warner ban ends. Here's what the selectors have been doing, and here's hoping you can make some sense out of it James McCaghrey.

Sandos: "Meanwhile seeing the 'bright side', Marcus Harris and Usman Khwaja are enjoying a long spell of being seen as 'not-out' on Cricinfo Live Scores...:)"

1pm ICYMI, Faf du Plessis, the South Africa captain, was suspended overnight for the next Test against Pakistan for maintaining a slow over-rate, despite completing a win in under four days!

Kunal: "@Alza, there would be no asterisk next to it. As Ryan commented earlier, this is Australia's home, and they should've won without Warner and Smith too. India would, even without Pujara and Kohli, at home."

Aditya: "@Chris I understand your point but there is no comparison between club cricket and Test cricket. The pace for one is hugely different. Which means there are real dangers of player safety when playing in the rain."

Chris : "What's so frustrating right now for those of us in the ground is that this rain is really light and they could play in it. Local club players would have to but mist is too much for test players?"

Alza: "Unfortunately this Test series win for India has an asterisk next to it, after Australian's best two batsman were ripped out of the side overnight (warranted after their actions, although with a harsh ban) which took the heart and soul out of the side. Credit where credit is due, great efforts by the Indians, especially their fast bowling group who have been the far better disciplined attack between the two." -- Reminds me of India's original great performance in Australia, back in 1977, where they lost 3-2. Australia were ripped by the World Series of Cricket back then, forcing once-greats like Bob Simpson to return as captain at the ripe age of 41!

12.40pm Thanks, Hemant. If you're waking up right now in India, well your Monday morning just got worse. Still no opportunity for the India bowlers to try and make it 3-1. The lunch break's till 1.10pm, and from there we'll see when play begins.

And with that, I would take a break. Say hello to Sreshth Shah.

Joe: "I would hate to see roofs go on these stadiums: weather just adds another irreplaceable aspect to test cricket. The differing conditions are why teams travel around the world to play other countries... and not stop home and play against an Australian computer!"

Peter R: "Aussie living in China now, thanks to you guys for doing this as it is the only way I can really keep up with ball by ball cricket. My thoughts about the lack of dominance by any team worldwide is that it is a good thing. I remember when Australia was on top, even if they had a bad day, you knew what the result was going to be. It became boring knowing the result was inevitably an Aussie win."

Keshav Seshadri: "Except Eng, Aus, and SA, all other teams are missing 1-2 entries India are yet to win in SA Pak are yet to win in SA and Aus NZ are yet to win in India and SA WI are yet to win in SA and Sri Lanka SL are yet to win in India, Aus, SA, and West Indies and of course BD need to win a series everywhere except in Zim, West Indies, as well as beat everyone except West Indies and Zimbabwe at home while Zim won an away series in Pak, and so have all others on the list"

Jigar Shah: "I had heard about the agony of 77/78, 80/81, 85/86. My dad even managed to find a recording of some of those series as we watched that in 2004 just after another drawn series. Today finally Virat's team have liberated my dad's soul. He will be smiling up in the heavens. Virat's India has crossed the final frontier that generations before them failed to achieve. Thank you I@M Kohli and team. "

RyanJ: "As an Aussie fan it pains me to say this. I don't understand the argument of "if we remove Kohli and pujara India would suffer too". This is your home. You are supposed to be immune to specific stars and be lions in your home ground. If we play them in India, Rahul dhawan rohit would be enough to take the game away from us. Let's give credit where credit is due. Aussies are outplayed this time around. "

Karan Takkar: "@Pritam; also Windies and Lanka haven't won any away series between the two of them. "

Michael: "New Zealand have never won a series in India or South Africa."

Pritam Banerjee: "Pakistan and Sri Lanka have never won in Australia or South Africa. Bangladesh Have never won in India. Zimbabwe have never won a test series in India. "

AJ: "India are about to be the only Asian team to win in Aus so that means Pak, SL and Bang have never done it." -- And no Asian team has won a series in South Africa either.

Pranay: "Just saw in the live report that after today, India would have won test series in every country except SA. Are there other test playing nations (from original 8) who have never won a series in another nation like SL in India etc.?" -- Anyone off-hand, readers?

Stu Art: "This lunch debate is so true! So if fine weather were to appear now and ground was good to go the play wouldn't start even though the players sitting around doing nothing? #rubbish Get roofs on these stadiums!!!"

12.00pm Gnasher: "Lunch will be taken at 12.30 as per the scheduled time. Still mizzling/drizzling. So earliest possible start would now be 1.10pm."

11.40am "The rain is very, very light now...the type they would probably play in if they had already started," says Gnasher.

Later today, Ian Chappell would be taking questions about the series. Shower me with your queries, guys. And don't forget to include the hashtag #AskChappelli. You can do the same on Twitter as well.

11.20am Gaurav Khanna: "It's been 30 mins since last update on the ground condition. Any new updates guys? Are we gonnna get any cricket this session? " -- Still raining out there.

Robert: "It is fair to say that all teams from outside have suffered in sub-continent, and vice-versa. But this Indian team won a test each in SA and England and a series in Australia. Give credit where it is due. This Indian team is one of the best test teams in a long time. "

Raj K: "There used to be a concept of Rest Day in Test Cricket (taken after the 3rd day) upto the '80s at least. When did that concept stop?" -- You can read about that and more here: The rest is history.

Steve: "@Gautam If India had won at least one of the series played in SA or England then the answer to the question could be yes but with SA being undefeated in their last 7 test series on home soil (with a test series victory away in Australia) and England having just won in Sri Lanka then India will have to continue to prove themselves in conditions outside of the subcontinent. That said an impressive series win for India in Australia but to talk of passing the baton is perhaps a bit too soon..."

Abhi: "@Umair Agree with your point but a couple of clarifications - The scoreline on Ind vs Eng is a bit flattering towards England- it wasn't a hiding... And India can reasonably claim to be the best team in the world as every team seems to be struggling away from home and India has performed in every country"

Divy : "By 1995 Windies had ceased to be a cricketing power and only held the crown, the passing of baton term came later on. Australia were a very good team which had competition from SA, Pak and WI in that era for the top spot. By 1999 they secured it by embarking on a 16 test winning spree and continued to dominate for the next 8 years. So right now we are in a more equal era, where India, England, SA are doing well, but with Aus, NZ not far behind. I actually enjoy it this way."

Sagar Uprety: "I think the Baton passing happened in 2008 when Graeme Smith's South Africa defeated Australia 2-1 including that famous 414 chase. That Aus team was still being captained by Ponting. "

Umair Muhajir: "No baton can be passed here (even though history is being created), because this Australia wasn't considered the best team around. And given India's own hiding in England last summer, they can't be either-- although I am rooting for them!!!"

10.50am Meanwhile, it's still raining in Sydney. "Not heavy, but hanging around," adds Gnasher.

Gautam Naik: "Is this WI 1995 moment when the cricketing order changed the baton from WI to Aus. Though no team clearly dominates today like what WI and Aus did in their respective reigns but with due respect to SA/NZ/Eng do you think that this cricketing baton will be changed at Sydney on this historic day today?"

Dwarakanath Sas: "Jai. I agree with you. It seems a poor decision to go off for Tea when there has been precious little play all day. Spectators spend nearly all day in the ground and they are treated with utter disrespect. ICC has made great improvements in many areas but judgements on poor light and on "nature induced" conditions remains a lot to be desired. "

Ankush Gokarn: "Harshit - the gold coin is not a real gold coin.the $1 and $2 coins are made of copper and look like gold hence used as a slang - 'Gold Coin' for loose change donations "

Manu: "Just curious - other than England, how many teams have won series in Australia?" -- West Indies, New Zealand and South Africa, apart from England. So that basically means no Zimbabwe and no Asian team. Afghanistan and Ireland haven't played in Australia yet.

Divy : "@Sree No Asian team has ever won a test series in Australia. This is going to be historic in every sense of the term."

Karthik Acharya: "Bonjour/Bonsoir from Lyon, France! Being an Indian studying in France with no access to cricket on TV, really enjoyed your coverage of this important series and I'm so glad India will win a historic series today! Just hoping by the time I wake up tomorrow I'll see a win for India rather than draw due to weather! I would forever be grateful to have my comment published on this historic day for Indian cricket! Merci Beucoup! "

Jai: "We could have had so many more overs bowled yesterday. The ICC must be more pragmatic when it comes to bad light and spurts of rain that stop play. Get with the times - you're not doing test cricket any favours. Enough of umpires mulling over "scheduled inspections" and enforcing lunch / tea breaks after several hours of stoppages in play! No other sport is prone to such beuracracy and inefficiency. "

10.15am "Full cover on the pitch. Steady drizzle has set in," says Gnasher.

Sree: "When was the last time India won a test series in Australia?? Who was the captain?" -- India have never won a Test series in Australia before.

Harshit: "What's a gold coin donation day?" -- On the fifth day of the Test, fans can get into the stadium for just a gold coin which will be donated to The McGrath Foundation. There are $1 and $2 dollar coins. You can decide how much you want to donate.

Meanwhile, Ricky Ponting has slammed Australia for not showing enough desperation.

Prashant Chawla: "Heyy..Can you please confirm whether it is a gold coin donation day to enter the stadium?" -- Yes, very much.

Suyog: "@Adit, I would have loved to see Australia battling it out and saving the game instead of hoping for rain to save the game for them...Not too many times in the past did Australian fans have to pray to the Rain Gods...In the 80s when Australia was playing the Windies would they be praying like this.."

Pradeep : "Rain hit day yesterday with lots of chatter- over a 100 comments published yesterday and mine didn't get a look in" -- Are you hoping for another rain-hit day today?

9.55am Gnasher confirms we have delayed start today.

Meanwhile, it looks like Australia's problems are not only limited to on field issues. Fast bowler Nathan Coulter-Nile has criticised poor communication from the Australia selectors over his omission from the ODI squad to face India. Gnasher has got more here.

Adit: "I'm 100 metres from the stadium walking on Anzac parade. It's a very slight drizzle but the city is obscured by clouds. Hoping for more of this as an Aussie fan!"

Rivlud: "Absolute joke yesterday when they took the players off before Tea and not coming back on, hopefully a full day's play because otherwise it's pretty unfair to see what has happened!"

9.35am Another update from Gnasher: "Drizzle in the air. The pitch is now being covered. There is actually more light rain visible on the radar now than there was all day yesterday." -- Now that's not a very good start to the day.

Shagun Segan: "4am in India now and I have a meeting at 9am. So hoping 4.5 hours is enough for India to win this one. Overcast weather, 2nd innings shami, 4wkts-yadav and we get Australia under 175. Let's play! "

Vinod Patel: "If game is starting half an hour early ie. 10 am Sydney time, shouldn't commentary be starting at 9:30 am Sydney time?" Right you are!

Here's Gnasher with some heads-up: "Another overcast day in Sydney with the occasionally spot of rain in the air. But the pitch isn't covered at the moment and the floodlights aren't on. The forecast is for it to stay like this much of the day, so light could well be an issue later."

9.30am Hello everyone! The last day of the Test series. Hoping more of cricket and less of rain.

So, that's all for today from our side. See you tomorrow, with an early start.

So, just to summarise the current situation. Australia are 316 behind, with all their ten wickets in hand. Play will start 30 minutes early tomorrow which is 10am local, 4.30am IST or 11pm GMT (the day before). Only 25.2 overs bowled today, four of them in Australia's second innings. India manged to wrap up Australia's first innings for 300 and enforced the follow-on, becoming the first team to do so in Australia in 31 years. But then bad light and subsequent drizzle halted play again and forced early stumps.

Kashyap: "Revision of follow on after first day's washout is quite interesting and something I have never heard of. What happens if the play is washed out for the first two days, three days and so on until the fourth day?" -- 150 for a three or four-day game, 100 for a two-day game and 75 for a one-day game.

Dwarak Nath Bak: "To add to the Hemant's answer to Arvind, five days is from the start of the play. In case first day is washed out, it is considered a 4 day game and follow on difference is 150 in that case" -- Perfect.

Elsewhere, Pardeep Narwal and Pawan Kumar Sehrawat star in ESPN's Pro Kabaddi League Team of the Tournament. Read more here.

Shreeyan: "@ Afnan.. New Zealand domestic team had done this in 2018 that they both declared their first innings..@Hemant am i right??" -- You are partially right. One of those was a second innings, happened in October last year.

5.22pm And it's called off for the day. Half an hour early start tomorrow, 98 overs to be bowled.

5.20pm Further update from Monga: "There is a slight drizzle on. The covers are coming on."

Arvind : "How do they calculate follow on targets?" -- Just subtract 199 from the first team's total, that's your target to avoid follow-on. That's for a five-day game.

John: "If Australia are saved by the weather here, 2-1 is a very flattering score line for them."

5.15pm "Umpire are coming out for another inspection," says Monga.

Afnan: "I always wanted to ask this question. Is it possible for a team batting second in the first inning to declare when they know they cannot win or draw the match? What are the rules of declaration for first three innings? Could have Australia declared when they were nine down and forced India bat for a second time?" -- Australia could have declared but since they were behind the follow-on target, India held the right to ask them bat again.

5.00pm There is still one hour before play can be called off officially. Still some hope.

Many of you want David Warner and Steven Smith back in this Australia side, but for now they are battling against each other in the Bangladesh Premier League. Smith has won the toss and Comilla Victorians will bowl. Warner is captaining Sylhet Sixers.

While we wait for play to resume, I am reminded of various reasons which have brought a halt.

5.00pm "Lots of fans leaving now," says Melinda.

4.40 pm It's been 37 minutes since they were promised some cricket and clearly the fans at the SCG aren't impressed. They've turned on the lights on their phones now and beaming it out into the middle. #YoureWelcome

Thiaga: "Knowing the light situation and how picky the umps were with it yesterday, if I was Kohli, I would have brought the spinners on very quickly (or even started the innings with them). I think Kohli missed a tactical trick there. India could have possibly bowled another 20 over with just the spinners on." Yep. It wasn't like there wasn't any evidence of Australia showing they can bat against spin, like their last-wicket partnership putting on 42 runs, batting for an hour or so, when Jadeja and Kuldeep bowled. India had a new ball. They had Bumrah and Shami who are among the top three wicket-takers in the series. It was a straightforward call.

Ricky Ponting hasn't pulled any punches as a pundit over this series. Earlier, while dealing with criticism about the flat pitches over the last two Tests, he said, well then score some runs. Today, seeing Nathan Lyon not take a review - when there were two of them left and with Australia nine down at that point - he said slack, no desperation

Jacq: "Everyone keeps harping about Smith and Warner, bit please think why they are out in the first place. They weren't getting results even in helpful conditions with best pace attack. That called for the desperate measure they took and now they are out. Please don't take credit away from the wonderful cricket that India have been playing "

Aniket Jain: "This has been a tremendously successful series for India. Opener in form of Mayank Agarwal, Che Pu striking gold, Pant excelling with bat and bowlers coming good yet again. Not often you see Indian batsmen as top 3 run scorers in an overseas tour and with Kohli being number 3!"

Saiprasad shett: "After this test series India are not playing much test until the World Cup, but talking about openers, I feel India have found Mayank Agarwal finally, but who will be the other pair KL or Vijay or will Dhawan should be given a chance, and what will happen ones Prithvi shaw will get fit, but Mayank should be the permanent for now, as he attacks and plays in one end it will be easy for vijay kind of player to handle the new ball."

Sekhar: "I feel that once we have Prithwi Shaw back, he and Mayank will forge a lethal combination. Both bat without restraint and keeps the scoreboard moving at a frenetic pace. Should be the dawn of a new era for test openers in India" Sure. No pressure.

Anthony : "Everyone keeps going on about smith and Warner. Australia need Bancroft opening NOW. At least he will hang around and keep his wicket longer than 20 overs. Get him ready for England by playing him in the Sri Lanka tests"

Ranger: "Anthony, Bancroft scored three 50s in 8 tests, averaged 30. Not sure why he'd be an immediate pick NOW, with no first class experience fr 9 months."

4.20 pm The complications of bad light rages on. "Big conversation then with Shastri, Kohli and the umps," says Mel Farrell from the ground. For the record, we have 31 more overs scheduled to play - and the forecast is expected to be pretty much the same for tomorrow as well

Rohan Agarwal: "The absence of Smith & Warner will be a blessing in disguise for Australia. Some of their players will have matured before time which will make them stronger once the two spearheads return. Cricket Australia will also take steps to rebuild the domestic level. I think we will see he rise again in a years time."

Neali: "It's not that the Aussie team have bad players. They are all excellent players but a) India have played exceptionally well and b) Australian players have no confidence and who can blame them?...The selectors kept giving Mitch Marsh chance after chance. He couldn't play his natural game because he was afraid of failing...aussie media make it so difficult, why would you want to play for your country when if you fail you get publicly shamed?...If you are lucky enough to be selected. Enjoy it!"

4.10 pm More from Monga: We are losing time now. Umpires stand in the middle possibly waiting for the light to improve. Boys with flags stand at the players' entry into the playing field. They haven't been given the bad-light memo, I assume. Umpires are walking back off. Don't think we are resuming anytime soon. The hessian cover is back on.

With that, I'ma take a lil break. Wake me up when stuff, you know, happens.

4.00 pm Sid Monga says, "Umpires are coming out, but as Gnasher is quick to point, they don't have their hats on. They are just coming out to check the light etc, we think"

Aussiej: "India are an amazing cricket team in every format , genuinely my favourite to watch . They have so much talent and depth . Unfortunately Aus have been poor this series and I predict darker days ahead . We are just not producing enough test caliber players . Add to that the selectors are getting it all wrong."

Aditya: "Cricinfo has had quite a few pieces recently suggesting that winning the toss has often had a significant bearing on how teams perform and particularly when they play away from home. Any statistics out there on the percentage of tosses won by the teams led by Waugh and later Ponting? That would give the current trend a lot of context" We'll get the bots working on it right away

Joe: "As an England fan (up since 4am following on cricinfo) congratulations to India however this test goes good players standing up to be counted at different times, But part of me wishes we played this Aussie side this time last year...."

Jitendra : "Nobody is talking about Bhuvi? It shows Indian bowling came long tail. It's satisfying. There was big question, why shouldn't have great fast unit? And current lineup suggest, question is solved."

3.43 pm They're going off for bad light! And it's an early tea as well. That blow that Harris took, ducking straight into the line of a short ball may have made the umpires believe the light isn't good enough for the batsmen to see the ball. They went up to Kohli, had a chat with him and then took the players off. The game will resume at 4.03 pm, according to a tweet from the BCCI handle.

An entire session's been washed off. Australia's tail wagged (a bit). Kuldeep Yadav picked up a five-for in his first Test down under. India enforced the follow on - only the second time they've done that to Australia in Australia. After all of that, bad light brings an end to a session that was bubbling up quite nicely. Hopefully it improves and we see some more action after the break

JM Vats: "Are the flood lights not allowed to be turned on (Bad light stops play)?" Oh they were on. But yet...

The sixth season of the Pro Kabaddi League saw Bengaluru Bulls shock everyone to become champions but there were many more surprises through the season. Read more here

Sourabh Chatter: "Follow on to Australian in Australia simply ends the debate,No doubt that this is the best overseas team for india." Well, South Africa did knock Australia over (when they still had Smith and Warner) not so long ago - and that was after they lost Dale Steyn on the first day of the tour to injury. And New Zealand pulled off a coup against Pakistan in the UAE. There are a few contenders out there.

Sid: "Looks like Bumrah has played all his games overseas. Teams should develop different teams for overseas and home Tests. Eg:Dhawan, Umesh in for home tests. Bumrah,Rahane for away tests. Players can then practice the specific skills required for the conditions they play in. Will also give players a break from the tight schedules and/or let them participate in overseas T20 tournaments (which should reduce the number of exceptional players like ABD and McCullum retiring early for a bigger paycheck)."

Vishal: "Second Innings Shami needs to be pick of the bowlers for India now - stage is set for bowler with a big heart. Great chance for India to win this by 3-1."

Chirag : "What a way to celebrate Kapil Dev's birthday! India on verge on a historic series win due to brilliant performance by Indian pacers."

Balaji Prasad: "Muthu, Can you stats man please check if India have ever taken 80 wickets in a series in Austraila before?" Actually, this is Hemant's territory and he says, "never in a four-Test series, but they did take 98 in a five-Test series in 1977-78."

Pranav Avula: "If Bumrah takes one more wicket in this match, he will be the 2nd fastest Indian to 50 Test wickets... only after Ravi Ashwin!"

Hanuma Vihari hurt his left shoulder during fielding. He has been assessed and should be back on the field within an hour.

Jasprit Bumrah, over the wicket, one shy of 50 Test wickets. And he's barely 12 months in!