Team India lost the Sydney Test Match, do they have any chances of qualifying for the WTC Final? Explained!

Can Team India still qualify for the WTC Final after suffering an embarrassing defeat in the Sydney Test-Match Or have they been eliminated completely?

The 5th & Final Test-Match in Sydney between Fierce-Rivals Australia and India ended today and the home team secured an easy six-wicket win and this win allowed them to secure the series by 3-1.This win of the Aussies has also made some significant changes in the overall standings of the 2023-25 World Test Championship (WTC) cycle. 

Talking about the contest, the Jasprit Bumrah-led team were at 124-4 in their 2nd inning and they were looking set to set a big target for the Pat Cummins-led team. However, the Australian bowlers were in deadly mood as their perfect bowling display led to Team India suffering a batting collapse and they lost wickets in quick succession and eventually got bundled out for a mere score of 157 runs. 

Wicket-keeper batsman Rishabh Pant fought the lone warrior's battle as he played an impressive inning of 61 runs in just 33 deliveries but he didn't get any kind of support from his fellow batters at the other end and the Kangaroos took full advantage of this and eventually the game turned in the favour of the Defending Champions. 

For the Australian team, Scott Boland took 6 wickets while giving away 45 runs while skipper Pat Cummins also played a good hand with figures of 3-44 next to his name. 

The Aussies were given a target of 162 runs to win the Sydney Test-Match but they lost wickets unnecessarily as Sam Konstas (22 runs in 17 deliveries), Marnus Labuschagne (6 runs in 20 deliveries), and Steve Smith (4 runs in 9 balls) went back to the pavilion cheaply, leaving the Australian team suddenly in a dire position of 58/3.

Next, opening batter Usman Khawaja played a good knock of 41 runs in 45 deliveries which allowed his team to initiate a comeback in the contest. If Bumrah wouldn't have got injured, then Khawaja wouldn't even get the chance to go past the 10 runs mark. 

Without the availability of Bumrah, the Aussie batters started to play their shots freely and theu began creating a lot of pressure on the Indian bowling unit. While Prasidh Krishna did his best to help his team stay alive in the contest, he began to falter and this worked in the favour of the Australians. 

As a result, the duo of Beau Webster & Travis Head got involved in a strong partnership for thethe fifth wicket and added 58 runs in just 53 balls and this turned out to be winning factor. They helped their team reach a score of 162-4 and the Kangaroos won the encounter by a margin of six wickets.

WTC Final Chance:

Pat Cummins-led Aussies have successfully qualified for the 2023-25 World Test Championship (WTC) Final after securing the BGT series 3-1. Temba Bavuma-led South Africa have already secured their tickets for the Final after defeating Pakistan in the first Test-Match. 

Keeping the statistics in mind, Team India have failed to qualify for the WTC Final for the first time since 2021. They are ranked third in the overall Standings with a PCT of 50. South Africa are the table toppers with a PCT of 66.67 while the Kangaroos are ranked 2nd with 63.73 PCT next to their name. They are followed by the likes of New Zealand (48.21) and Sri Lanka (45.45) respectively.

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