Stephen Waugh's Australians need to produce an unprecedented innings to wrestle the series-deciding fourth cricket test from India after Anil Kumble snared eight wickets and his captain Sourav Ganguly set the hosts 443 to win.
Australia was 10 without loss at stumps yesterday with Justin Langer (4) and Matt Hayden (1) surviving four overs in dark and overcast conditions at the Sydney Cricket Ground.
The Australians need another 433 runs in 90 overs today to send skipper Waugh out on a winning note.
Other teams have scored more runs in the fourth innings of a test, but not for a win.
The West Indies scored 418 for seven in the fourth innings to beat Australia in Antigua last year to set the record. Australia's 404 for three to beat England by seven wickets at Leeds in 1948 was the previous best.
But with the series level at 1-1, Waugh will be more concerned about salvaging a draw and ensuring he's not the first Australian captain to lose a test series at home in 11 years.
The 38-year-old Waugh, retiring after this test, has the most successful strike rate of any test captain, with 41 wins in 56 matches. Yet the 168-test veteran still faces one of his biggest ever challenges.
The series is poised in India's favor, although it needs only a draw to retain the Border-Gavaskar trophy it won in 2001.
India declared at 705 for seven in its first innings, its highest ever test total inspired by Sachin Tendulkar's career-high 241 not out and his 353-run fourth-wicket partnership with V.V.S Laxman (178).
Kumble took 8-141 as India bowled Australia out for 474 in reply, 31 runs short of the follow-on target (506) just after lunch yesterday.
Although Simon Katich scored 125, his maiden test century, and shared a 117-run eighth-wicket stand with Jason Gillespie (47) to keep the Australians in with a remote chance of winning.
As a result, Ganguly didn't enforce the follow-on, hoping to play Australia out of contention and ensure India didn't bat fourth on a deteriorating pitch.
S Africa vs. West Indies
Opener Herschelle Gibbs helped South Africa to tighten their grip on the third test against the West Indies with a half-century at Newlands yesterday.
At lunch on the fourth day, South Africa were 127 for two in their second innings, a lead of 232, with Gibbs unbeaten on 54 and Jacques Kallis 38 not out.
During a session in which rain fell lightly for much of the second hour, Gibbs was in imperious form and hit nine fours during his innings.
After three days of sunshine, day four dawned overcast, conditions which traditionally offer the bowlers substantially more assistance in Cape Town.
Fidel Edwards proved that to be the case with the 11th ball of the day, an inswinger to Graeme Smith (24) which the South African captain left alone only to turn and see his off stump cartwheeling backwards.
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