THE WHITEWASH

 

Image Credit- ESPN CricInfo.

Venue- Sabina Park, Kingston [July 12-14, 2025].

In the summer of 2025, the Australian cricket team toured the West Indies to play 3 Tests and 5 T20 Internationals. Interestingly, the Windies in their previous encounter were able to draw the test series in Australia. As a result, everyone was expecting a strong contest between the two great cricketing nations. However, it turned out to be a one-sided affair as Aussies steamrolled Windies in their own backyard. The series was won without much contest, and when both teams reached Jamaica for the final encounter, the clouds of whitewash were looming before the hosts.

Australian Captain Pat Cummins won the third toss of the series and decided to bat first. The pitch was a bowlers' paradise, which would make the life of batsmen tough with every passing day. However, this is when the class of Steve Smith came into play. Smith scored a gritty 48 off 66 deliveries and helped Australia reach a score of 225 in their first innings. Apart from Smith, Green scored a valuable 46 as the Windies continued chipping wickets at regular intervals. 

In response, the Windies were bowled out for just 143 in their first innings. The Aussie pace attack literally broke the spine of the Windies batting line-up. However, the hosts were still in the game, as their bowlers bowled out Australia for just 121 runs in their second innings. Hence, the Windies now needed 204 runs to win the test match and avoid a whitewash.

However, what happened next was something truly unbelievable. Mitchell Starc bowled one of the most destructive spells of his career as the hosts were bowled out for just 27 runs in their second innings. Interestingly, this was Starc's 100th test, and in the process of picking 6 wickets, he also completed 400 wickets in test cricket. Moreover, he completed a fifer in just 15 balls, which is yet another world record. Apart from Starc, this match will also be remembered for Scott Boland's heroics as he picked up a hat-trick in the second innings. It is quite unfortunate that we often miss Boland's name while talking about this test. However, it was a collective team effort which resulted in a historic series win in the Caribbean. 

To watch the spell of Mitchell Starc, Click Here.

To watch the spell of Scott Boland, Click Here. 

To watch the iconic 3rd Day of the 3rd Test, Click Here.