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- Australia host India for a five-match Test series starting in Perth on November 21st for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
- India is the current holder of the trophy. They only need to draw the series to retain the title.
- The Aussies have issues with their team. They are still looking to find a replacement for David Warner at the top of their batting order.
- India will arrive in Australia fresh from a shock 3-0 home series defeat to New Zealand.
Pat Cummins and his No.1 ranked Australia Test team will face Rohit Sharma and his No.2 ranked India team over a five-match series.
The series will last for just under seven weeks. The full itinerary is:
- 1st Test: Optus Stadium, Perth, Nov 21-25, 2024
- 2nd Test: Adelaide Oval, Adelaide, Dec 5th-9th 2024
- 3rd Test: The Gabba, Brisbane, Dec 13th-17th, 2024
- 4th Test: MCG, Melbourne, Dec 25th-30th, 2024
- 5th Test: SCG, Sydney, Jan 2nd-7th, 2025
Okay, the Ashes between England and Australia is historically a huge event. But the Border-Gavaskar Trophy that Australia and India compete for is now up there with the Ashes as one of the ultimate Test series to win.
India is the current holder of the trophy. They won the 2022-23 series 2-1 in India. Furthermore, India has won the last four Border-Gavaskar series, two in India, and two in Australia.
The last time Australia won the trophy was in 2014/15 when the hosts defeated India 2-0 on home soil. Steve Smith led the way with a mammoth 769 runs in what was then a four-match Test series.
Australia will believe this is their time, and the bookmakers agree.
Australia vs. India Series Winner Betting
Australia is -225 to win the Border-Gavaskar Trophy when the 1st Test gets underway later this month. India is +275 to win, and a drawn series is +700. A drawn series would see India retain the trophy as it stays with the current holders.
More odds from the best cricket betting sites can be found on our odds table. All our cricket betting picks are based on odds provided by our recommended partners.
| Series Result Betting |  |  |  |
| Australia | -225 | -225 | -225 |
| India | +275 | +275 | +275 |
| Draw | +700 | +700 | +700 |
Australia
Australia is -125 to win the 1st Test in Perth and -225 to win the Test series.
The last time the men’s test team played was in their 2-0 series win away to New Zealand in March/April of this year.
That series was a long time ago. And although they will have played plenty of cricket between these Test matches, it will either have been at domestic level or in shorter formats.
In the New Zealand series, Steve Smith opened the batting with Usman Khawaja. Smith, Australia’s best player, was originally promoted up the batting order to replace the retiring David Warner at the beginning of their home series against West Indies, the series before they faced the Kiwis.
The move was far from successful and it has already been announced that Smith will revert to his usual batting position of No.4 where he has enjoyed so much success throughout his career.
Moving Smith back to the middle order makes sense, but it leaves an opening at the top of the batting order, and Australia doesn’t have a ready-made replacement for Warner ready to step in.
The candidates appear to be Nathan McSweeney, Marcus Harris, and Cameron Bancroft.
McSweeney is uncapped, while Harris and Bancroft have previously failed to convince when selected in the specialist role.
India will sense a vulnerability in this position and will be looking to expose it.
India
Rohit Sharma’s team have just been beaten 3-0 at home by New Zealand. A result like that doesn’t inspire a bet on India to win the 1st Test at odds of +210.
The defeat ended a run of 18 series wins across 12 years. It was also the first time India had been swept in home conditions since South Africa won 2-0 back in 2000.
Furthermore, Australia and England have both failed miserably to beat India on home soil in recent years, making New Zealand’s win all the more remarkable.
Bizarrely, India named their 18-man touring squad for Australia before the end of the series loss to New Zealand. The move has already attracted a lot of criticism. It will almost certainly attract a lot more should they lose to Australia as well.
🇮🇳 fans, happy with the Test squad to tour Australia? https://t.co/5TQZSMlLNW #AUSvIND pic.twitter.com/WfAOmBx9Lo
— ESPNcricinfo (@ESPNcricinfo) October 26, 2024
Captain Rohit Sharma is also on the firing line. The opening batter has credit in the bank. He did lead the T20 team to World Cup glory earlier in the year.
But Test cricket is a different format. And opening the batting in Australia is difficult. If Sharma struggles with the bat, and his team is also finding it difficult, the knives will well and truly be out for the 37-year-old skipper.
Best bets
Whoever fills the openers role for Australia almost has a free hit to succeed. The move that sees Steve Smith move back up to No.4 is the crucial one that the Aussies should benefit most from.
India would have loved to have Smith opening. By moving him, the Aussies have already secured a psychological blow to the tourists.
Furthermore, Rohit Sharma and his team will be reeling after the defeat to New Zealand. The loss has played right into the hands of Australia who are the masters of cashing in on a team down on their luck.
Australia to win the series and regain the Border-Gavaskar Trophy is our betting pick.
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