Indian cricket team in Australia in 1977–78

The India national cricket team toured Australia in the 1977–78 season to play 5 Test matches. Australia won the test series 3–2. The matches were played at the same time as the first World Series Cricket matches.

Indian cricket team in Australia in 1977–78
Date	2 December 1977 – 3 February 1978
Location	Australia
Result	Australia won the 5-match series 3–2
Teams  Australia  India Captains Bob Simpson Bishan Bedi Most runs Bob Simpson (539) Gundappa Viswanath (473) Most wickets Wayne Clark (28) Bishan Bedi (31)
← 1967–68 Series 1980–81 Series →

Test series

1st Test

2–6 December 1977 Scorecard

Australia	v	India
166 (46.7 overs) Peter Toohey 82 (142) Bishan Singh Bedi 5/55 (13.7 overs)		153 (50 overs) Dilip Vengsarkar 48 (115) Wayne Clark 4/46 (18 overs)
327 (91.5 overs) Bob Simpson 89 (269) Madan Lal 5/72 (19 overs)		324 (84.7 overs) Sunil Gavaskar 113 (264) Jeff Thomson 4/76 (19.7 overs)

Australia won by 16 runs The Gabba, Brisbane Umpires: Tom Brooks (Aus) and Max O'Connell (Aus)

• Australia won the toss and elected to bat.

2nd Test

16–21 December 1977 Scorecard

India	v	Australia
402 (79.6 overs) Mohinder Amarnath 90 (156) Jeff Thomson 4/101 (24 overs)		394 (118.6 overs) Bob Simpson 176 (355) Bishan Singh Bedi 5/89 (31 overs)
330/9d (73.5 overs) Sunil Gavaskar 127 (145) Sam Gannon 4/77 (18 overs)		342/8 (87.2 overs) Tony Mann 105 (165) Bishan Singh Bedi 5/105 (30.2 overs)

Australia won by 2 wickets WACA Ground, Perth Umpires: Robin Bailhache (Aus) and Dick French (Aus)

• India won the toss and decided to bat.

3rd Test

30 December 1977–4 January 1978 Scorecard

India	v	Australia
256 (69.2 overs) Mohinder Amarnath 72 (178) Wayne Clark 4/73 (19.2 overs)		213 (50.1 overs) Craig Serjeant 85 (170) B. S. Chandrasekhar 6/52 (14.1 overs)
343 (88.7 overs) Sunil Gavaskar 118 (285) Wayne Clark 4/96 (29 overs)		164 (51.1 overs) Gary Cosier 34 (55) B. S. Chandrasekhar 6/52 (20 overs)

India won by 222 runs Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne Umpires: Dick French (Aus) and Max O'Connell (Aus)

• India won the toss and decided to bat.
• This was India's first Test win in Australia.^[1]

4th Test

7–12 January 1978 Scorecard

Australia	v	India
131 (49.4 overs) Bob Simpson 38 (99) B. S. Chandrasekhar 4/30 (15 overs)		396/8d (101 overs) Gundappa Viswanath 79 (182) Jeff Thomson 4/83 (27 overs)
263 (98.7 overs) Peter Toohey 85 (258) E. A. S. Prasanna 4/51 (29 overs)

India won by an innings and 2 runs Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney Umpires: Robin Bailhache (Aus) and Tom Brooks (Aus)

• Australia won the toss and decided to bat.

5th Test

28 January–3 February 1978 Scorecard

Australia	v	India
505 (112.4 overs) Graham Yallop 121 B. S. Chandrasekhar 5/136 (29.4 overs)		269 (82.2 overs) Gundappa Viswanath 89 (175) Wayne Clark 4/62 (20.7 overs)
256 (82.5 overs) Rick Darling 56 (122) Karsan Ghavri 4/45 (10.5 overs)		445 (141.4 overs) Mohinder Amarnath 86 Bruce Yardley 4/134 (43 overs)

Australia won by 47 runs Adelaide Oval, Adelaide Umpires: Dick French (Aus) and Max O'Connell (Aus)

• Australia won the toss and decided to bat
• Rick Darling, Bruce Yardley, Ian Callen and Graeme Wood (all Aus) made their Test debuts.

Annual reviews

• Playfair Cricket Annual 1978
• Wisden Cricketers' Almanack 1978

Further reading

• Chris Harte, A History of Australian Cricket, Andre Deutsch, 1993
• Ramachandra Guha, A Corner of a Foreign Field - An Indian History of a British Sport, Picador, 2001