Cricket legend Sunil Gavaskar believes Australia has gained the upper hand ahead of the third Test against India, starting Saturday. This comes after Australia’s decisive 10-wicket win in the Pink Ball Test at Adelaide, which leveled the five-match Border-Gavaskar Trophy series 1-1.

Australia’s victory was a remarkable turnaround, especially after their 295-run loss in the first Test at Perth. Gavaskar attributes Australia’s newfound momentum to their win in Adelaide, which has shifted the balance in their favor. The third Test, set to take place at the Gabba in Brisbane, promises to be an exciting clash between the two teams.

“The momentum that the Indian team got in Perth was lost during the 10-day gap. Now, the momentum is with Australia because they have won this Test match,” Gavaskar told Star Sports.

“After the Adelaide Test, a few days later, you are playing at The Gabba. So, the momentum is now with the Australian team,” he added.

Harbhajan Singh on how India lost momentum

Speaking to the same channel, former spinner Harbhajan Singh said India should try to play their best cricket to register a win at the ‘Gabba’ before travelling to more favourable venues in Sydney and Melbourne.

“Their best chances will be, I think, in Sydney and Melbourne. Anyway, if you play your best cricket at The Gabba and win there, then you will definitely win one match out of Melbourne or Sydney,” Harbhajan said.

He said India have the ability to make a comeback into the series despite the heavy loss in Adelaide.

“The equality of the first two Tests shows that both teams have the ability to come back. Australia has come back; now maybe it’s India’s turn to turn the tables,” he said.

The owner of 711 international wickets too agreed that the long interval between the first and second Test resulted in India losing the momentum.

“This series is tough because both teams have had losses. What happened with Australia in Perth, maybe they didn’t expect it. And what happened with India in Adelaide, maybe India also didn’t expect it.

“Although there was a very long gap in the middle between the two Tests, sometimes such a gap spoils the momentum, and it happened here,” he said.

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(With PTI inputs)