Decider: All to play for, but all not playing

While Australia have recovered from a poor start, it has been the opposite for India in the series so far

- ASHISH MAGOTRA IN AUSTRALIA

SYDNEY: It's not how you start but how you finish that really matters. If you are an Indian fan, think back to the scenes after the first Test of the Border Gavaskar Series in Perth on November 25. Led by Jasprit Bumrah, India had pulled off a remarkable win and the words being thrown around about Australia's performance were "humiliation" and "disintegration". There were also questions about the "togetherness" in the team following Josh Hazlewood's comment on batters not having done their bit.

How things have changed. With every match, Australia have become stronger as a group, while India relied on individual brilliance to try and keep up. As the series moves into the final Test at the Sydney Cricket Ground, that needs to change for the visitors.

With out-of-form skipper Rohit Sharma likely to sit out, the focus will be on the others to step up – not only as players but also as leaders. A big event can shake up the team but it can also force them to look inward and pull together. This is tough, this is Test cricket.

In the pre-match press conference, coach Gautam Gambhir chose to look at the situation positively.