Venue record a boost for India
India, under pressure following the loss in Melbourne, will take confidence from their ability to bounce back in away series and their batting record in Sydney
For the first time in their last five visits, India were in a position of strength for much of the Boxing Day Test but twin batting collapses and defensive fields let Australia back into the contest. The 122-run defeat leaves India with a mountain to climb ahead of the second Test in Sydney. The last time a visiting team went on to win a series in Australia despite a defeat in the Boxing Day Test was way back in 1992-93 when West Indies fought back to win the next two Tests in Adelaide and Perth to clinch the series 2-1.
Venue | Matches | Wins | Losses | Draws | Bat avg | Bowl avg | Avg diff |
Melbourne | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 23.92 | 40.16 | -16.24 |
Sydney | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 44.00 | 48.80 | -4.80 |
Adelaide | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 34.30 | 38.10 | -3.80 |
Brisbane | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 27.40 | 43.69 | -16.29 |
Perth | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 25.92 | 35.13 | -9.21 |
In the last two years, Australia have failed to dominate Tests in Sydney like they did for most of the 2000s. Between 2000 and the end of the Ashes in 2007, Australia were hardly tested in Sydney Tests, winning eight out of ten with the only loss coming against England in a dead rubber in 2003.
Period | Matches | Wins | Losses | Draws | W/L ratio | Bat avg | Bowl avg | Avg diff |
Overall | 99 | 54 | 28 | 17 | 1.92 | 31.88 | 28.44 | 3.44 |
1990-1999 | 10 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 1.50 | 32.44 | 30.33 | 2.11 |
2000-2006 (till end of Ashes 2006-07) | 10 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 8.00 | 46.82 | 32.91 | 13.91 |
2007 onwards | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 3.00 | 37.11 | 35.60 | 1.51 |
In the first Test in Melbourne, the much-vaunted Indian batting line-up did not quite live up the pre-series hype. Except for Sachin Tendulkar, no other batsman looked comfortable on a surface which consistently offered some help for the quick bowlers. Tendulkar, India's highest run-getter in Australia, has had an outstanding run in Tests in Sydney, scoring 664 runs in four Tests at an average of 221.33. In his previous two Tests at the venue, Tendulkar's unbeaten scores of 241 and 154 enabled India to compile huge totals on both occasions. Laxman, whose struggles at the MCG continued with twin failures, will be more than eager to bat in Sydney. He has scored centuries on each of his three visits to the ground and averages 96.20. In sharp contrast, his average in all other venues in Australia is a very modest 35.47. While both Tendulkar and Laxman have been far more successful in Sydney in comparison to the other grounds, Rahul Dravid has a fairly even record across venues.
Batsman | Matches (SCG) | Runs/avg (SCG) | 100/50(SCG) | Matches (other grounds) | Runs/avg (other grounds) | 100/50 (other grounds) |
Sachin Tendulkar | 4 | 664/221.33 | 3/1 | 13 | 963/38.52 | 3/5 |
VVS Laxman | 3 | 481/96.20 | 3/0 | 9 | 603/35.47 | 1/3 |
Rahul Dravid | 3 | 249/49.80 | 0/2 | 9 | 778/51.86 | 1/4 |
Ricky Ponting | 15 | 1346/64.09 | 5/6 | 71 | 5778/55.55 | 16/31 |
Michael Clarke | 7 | 339/28.25 | 1/0 | 31 | 2331/56.85 | 8/10 |
Michael Hussey | 6 | 550/78.57 | 2/0 | 30 | 2513/55.84 | 8/13 |
Over the years, Sydney has been a venue that has offered assistance to spinners. However, in the first and second innings, the pitches have generally tended to favour pace bowlers. Fast bowlers average 29.67 in the first innings while spinners average a much higher 41.83.
Innings number | Runs per wicket (Australia/visitors) | 100/50 | Pace (wickets/avg) | Spin (wickets/avg) |
1st innings | 33.20/36.06 | 6/9 | 52/29.67 | 24/41.83 |
2nd innings | 44.00/41.34 | 8/13 | 56/40.58 | 21/45.33 |
3rd innings | 37.04/25.61 | 3/11 | 36/31.72 | 27/34.92 |
4th innings | 132.00/19.12 | 1/4 | 21/31.95 | 19/20.89 |
Sydney, which hosted its first Test in 1882, is on verge of becoming only the third venue after Lord's and Melbourne to host 100 Tests. A comparison of the four venues that have hosted 90-plus Tests is quite interesting. While the result percentages at Lord's and The Oval are 61.78 and 61.70, the numbers are far higher in the two Australian grounds. This is mostly due to the fact that almost every game played in Australia before the Second World War was a 'Timeless Test' (matches played to a result).
Ground | Matches | Results/draws | Result % | W/L ratio (home team) | Matches (since 1970) | Results/draws | Result % | 100s per match | wickets per match |
Lord's | 123 | 76/47 | 61.78 | 1.74 | 67 | 40/27 | 59.70 | 1.77 | 30.26 |
Melbourne | 104 | 89/15 | 85.57 | 1.96 | 48 | 39/9 | 81.25 | 1.63 | 33.80 |
Sydney | 99 | 82/17 | 82.82 | 1.92 | 45 | 34/11 | 75.55 | 1.60 | 33.60 |
The Oval | 94 | 58/36 | 61.70 | 2.05 | 41 | 24/17 | 58.53 | 1.67 | 33.13 |
- Shane Warne, with 64 wickets at 28.12, is the highest wicket-taker in Tests at the SCG. Stuart MacGill is next, with 53 wickets at 24.47.
- Ponting holds the record for the most centuries scored at the SCG (5). Among visiting batsmen, Wally Hammond is on top with four centuries in five Tests.
- Four of the top five individual scores made in Sydney are by overseas batsmen. RE Foster is on top with 287 followed by Brian Lara, who made 277 in 1993.
- The closest result (in terms of runs) is the five-run win for South Africa in 1994 when they successfully defended a target of 117.
- The highest partnership at the SCG is 405 between Sid Barnes and Don Bradman in 1946. Laxman and Tendulkar are next, with their 353-run stand in 2004.