Australia back at their best, believes Cummins after Adelaide triumph

The home side's captain Pat Cummins stood out with his 13th five-wicket haul in Tests to bowl out India for 175 in the second innings, handing the Australian batters a 19-run target to level the series, which they cruised past comfortably with all 10 wickets in hand.

After a challenging start to the series in the first Test in Perth, skipper Cummins expressed satisfaction with his team’s performance, and believes that going 1-0 down in the series helped Australia get back to their best.

"Great week, great to level the series. You know, I think we were back to our best. I think being one down, no doubt there's a little bit more on it, trying to level up the series," Cummins said post-match in Adelaide.

"There was never that much noise within the group, we know what a good unit we are. I was happy, wasn’t too upset with how I bowled in Perth, felt really good this week and good to get a few wickets," he added.

The 31-year-old also grabbed his 50th wicket in Border-Gavaskar Trophy Tests, while adding his eighth fifer as captain in Test cricket, placing him just behind Imran Khan (12) and Richie Benaud (9) on the list of captains with most fifers in Tests.

While Cummins led the charge with the ball in the second innings, Mitchell Starc also delivered a standout performance at the Adelaide Oval, showcasing his class once again as he scalped a stunning 6-48 in the first innings, before returning a brace in the second. With his blistering display, the left-arm pacer made it 74 wickets in 13 matches and further staked his claim as the highest wicket taker in pink-ball Tests.

“Having someone like Starc, he’s amazing, just does it time and time again. He’s done it for over a decade now. Feel very lucky and privileged to have him in our team,” said Cummins.

Another southpaw, who shone for Australia - with the bat - was Travis Head, who forged a destructive 141-ball 140-run knock in front of his home crowd, dispatching the Indian bowlers to all parts of the ground with an innings instrumental in the win. The Australian skipper lauded Head’s ability to seize control in crucial moments and step up when the stakes are high.

“It feels like every time he walks out, the game's kind of in the balance, it can go one or two ways and, within the space of a session or so he really takes the game out of their (India) hands, and he just pressures right back onto the opposition, hits into weird areas.”

The left-hand batter, who struck match-winning centuries in the World Test Championship final and the ODI World Cup final against India last year, delivered another counter-attacking innings that turned the tide in his side’s favor.

“He feels like there's a small opportunity to up the ante and again just take the game away from the opposition. He's done it time and time again for us in many different formats and he's super impressive.”

Also among the key contributors, Scott Boland once again showed his mettle with the ball, providing crucial breakthroughs at key moments. The right-rm pacer got a brace in the first innings and topped it off with a three-wicket haul in the second. With Josh Hazlewood’s return on the horizon, Cummins acknowledged Boland’s significant contribution to the team.

“Scotty just fitted in straightaway, like he always does. He probes with every ball, top of off. Hopefully, Josh is back next week. But even then Scotty is unbelievable.”

With the series tied at 1-1, and having reclaimed their place atop the World Test Championship standings, Australia square off against India next in Brisbane in the third Test, starting next Saturday, 14 December.