Key posts
Starc declares himself fit to bowl
By Roy Ward
Mitchell Starc is bowling the first over for Australia, last night he declared himself fully fit after concerns about his back.
Starc told ABC Sport the issue he had treatment on the ground for during day three was not troubling him and he would be ready to do his job when India come out to bat.
Mitchell Starc of Australia bowls during day three.Credit: Getty Images
“It’s not something that’s bothering me, my pace is still up,” Starc told ABC Sport on Sunday night.
“I still bowled a spell after it and I was still at low 140km per hour so I’m not concerned.”
What will be more valuable? Time or runs?
A look at the Melbourne weather
WICKET: Bumrah gets five
Australia are all out as Bumrah crashes through the stumps to dismiss Lyon for 41.
That makes 30 wickets in the series for Bumrah with a Test to go in Sydney.
He finishes this innings with 5-57 from 24.4 overs. He could have had “eight wickets he bowled that well” said Mark Waugh on Fox Cricket.
India needs 340 to win. Play will pause for 10 or so minutes as the innings changeover.
India’s Jasprit Bumrah.Credit: Getty Images
Aussies bat on and what it says about the bowlers
By Daniel Brettig
Australia did not declare last night and they have not declared this morning.
Once again, this underlines that they have tired and injured bowlers and are worried about their capacity to outlast India at the back end of the series.
Australia have batted through the first over and grew the lead to 338 runs.
Click here to read more about the concerns about the bowlers.
It feels like a footy final
By Greg Baum
The trains are packed. So are the trams, and cars are streaming into Yarra Park.
The early crowd was so big that the MCC was forced to open the gates 15 minutes early.
Fans line up outside the MCG ahead of day five of the Boxing Day Test.Credit: Getty Images
They’ve sold about 50,000 discount tickets and they’re anticipating a crowd of at least 75,000, which would surely be a fifth-day record anywhere in the world. It has the feel of a footy final.
Blessed weather helps, and so does the state of the match and series. 1-1, 96 overs left, the Border-Gavaskar trophy on the line, and now only one remaining place in the World Test Championship final.
This. Is. Big.
What should Cummins do?
After choosing not to declare late yesterday, Pat Cummins has a choice to make this morning.
What would you do if you were in his shoes?
Want to go the cricket Louie? The answer was a quick one
By Gemma Grant
It was an easy answer for Jack Bisas when son Louie asked to head to the MCG for the last day of the Test.
The pair were watching the end of day four at home in Melbourne yesterday, and impressed by the final result.
Melbourne cricket fans Jack and Louie Bisas outside the MCG before day five of the 2024 Boxing Day Test.Credit: Gemma Grant
“It’s good to see day five… last week they were saying test cricket should be four days, but I’m a traditionalist,” Jack says.
Louie says that Steve Smith has been his player of the Test so far. And he admits that he was pretty excited about the $10 ticket offer too.
Jack is just excited to be back at a cricket match for the first time in 10 years.
He’s looking forward to a good day of competition.
“I think both teams can win… there’s not many matches where you could get three different results these days,” Jack said.
Your view: How many fans will turn up today?
Given the Border-Gavaskar series is on the line, the weather looks good and the quality of cricket witnessed so far in the match, you’d have to think, we’re a good chance to see the record fall today. What’s more the MCC announced at the weekend that entry today would be free for under-15s and capped at just $10 for adults.
Unsurprisingly, the all-time Test cricket crowd was set between the fiercest of rivals India and Pakistan.
The records show they drew 465,000 to their Test – billed as the Asian Test Championship – at Kolkata (then Calcutta) in February 1999. Pakistan won that match by 46 runs, and Saeed Anwar – who made a duck in the first innings – was adjudged player of the match for hitting 188 when Pakistan batted a second time.
How many fans do you think they’ll get at the MCG today?
The MCG has a record of its own in sight
The Indian cricket team are not alone chasing history today. The Melbourne Cricket Club is within sight of a record of its own.
The magic number for the MCC is 51,205. That’s how many spectators it will be hoping to draw to the MCG today for what shapes as a captivating day of Test cricket.
If the crowd reaches that size, it will set a new record for the largest crowd to ever attend a Test match in Australia, surpassing the 350,534 who attended the the MCG Test – which started on New Year’s Day – in 1937.
Judging by the lines outside the ground this morning, that record could be in the bag before the play begins.
