Sydney: Indian wickets tumbled in a dramatic final session of the fourth test before the visitors hung to claim a draw against Australia at the Sydney Cricket Ground on Saturday, limiting the series defeat to 2-0.
Australia claimed five wickets in the final session and looked capable of pulling off a victory but Ajinkya Rahane (38 not out) and Kumar Bhuvneshwar (20 not out) hung on in the final overs to avoid defeat, with the visitors finishing on 252-7.
Mitchell Starc took 2-36, including the prize wicket of India captain Virat Kohli for 46, and Josh Hazlewood (2-31) dismissed top scorer Murali Vijay for 80 to give the hosts a shot at victory before being frustrated by the final pair.
Australia captain Steve Smith had declared the hosts' second innings at the overnight score of 251-6, setting India 349 runs from 90 overs — an ambitious target on a worn pitch exhibiting uneven bounce and turn on the final day.
India lost only two wickets in the first two sessions: Nathan Lyon (2-110) deceived Lokesh Rahul (16) with extra bounce and the first innings centurion was hit on the gloves, looping the ball to David Warner at leg slip, then Rohit Sharma (39) was brilliantly caught by a diving Smith at slip off Shane Watson (1-22).
Vijay combined with Kohli for a 74-run partnership in nearly 23 overs before the innings quickly unraveled.
Vijay edged Hazlewood to Brad Haddin just after tea to open the door for the hosts.
Starc then removed Kohli, swinging the ball away from the new India captain, taking the edge which was caught by Watson diving low to his right.
Three balls into Starc's next over he trapped new batsman Suresh Raina lbw for his second duck of the match to leave India suddenly in trouble at 203-5.
Wriddhiman Saha was also dismissed without scoring, with Lyon trapping the wicketkeeper lbw after the ball stayed low.
Hazlewood then had Ravi Ashwin lbw for one, with replays showing umpire Richard Kettleborough correctly adjudged the ball would have hit leg stump.
Australia crowded the last remaining pair, with nine fielders in close catching positions, but could make no further inroads.
Australia won the series 2-0, and regained the Border-Gavaskar trophy, after victories in the first two tests in Adelaide and Brisbane respectively, and draws in Melbourne's third test and final test in Sydney.
