India’s tour of Australia 2024-25 will begin on November 22 with the first Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy at the Perth Stadium in Perth, announced Cricket Australia on Tuesday.
India, the only team to beat Australia in Australia in consecutive Test series, will start their tour Down Under in Perth for the first time. In the previous two occasions, the first Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy was played at the Adelaide Oval.
India- Australia Test Schedule
The first Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy was played at the Adelaide Oval.This time, Adelaide will host the second Test (December 6-10), which will be a Day-Night affair. The third Test is scheduled to begin on December 14 at the Gabba in Brisbane. There were no changes in the venues of the Boxing Day Test and the New Year’s Test with the MCG in Melbourne and SCG in Sydney taking the honours.
Why Perth Was Chosen As The Venue For The First Test
Kangaroos have an impeccable record at the new Perth Stadium with a four-out-of-four win ratio. India and Australia had also featured in the debut of this venue back in December 2018 which the hosts won. That was the only Test that team had won during that four-match series as India beat them in Adelaide and Melbourne to clinch their maiden Test series victory on Australian soil.
Big Gap Between First And Second Test
The big gap between the first and second Test is kept because the BCCI reportedly wants to play a practice match with the pink ball to get the players accustomed to it before the Adelaide Test. Notably, India were bowled out for their all-time low score of 36 in the second innings of their last pink ball Test in Adelaide.