Cricket betting: Fourth Test: Australia vs India

Australia fell short of a world record straight 17th Test victory when they lost to India in Perth and you can bet that they will be going all out to start a new run in the fourth and last Test which starts on Thursday morning in Adelaide. Click here for a free Totesport £25 to bet on cricket with Totesport Shorn of their in-form batsman Matthew Hayden they were forced to open their innings with a debutant and a five-Test veteran and it showed as they performed uncharacteristically in the first innings of the third Test when they could only total 212. Captain Ricky Ponting will welcome back Hayden for the final Test of the series and the destructive batsmen, who is averaging 76.75 against India this series, will be hoping to banish the blues after his side's rare loss. His fellow opener Phil Jaques has vowed to put his first taste of Test defeat to positive use, declaring that Australia will be "fiercely competitive" and "as aggressive as possible" in a bid to ram home the series win. Jacques also can't wait to see the return of Hayden. "Matt coming back into the side will make a difference to our team and give us a whole lot of confidence," said Jaques. "He's a fine player, with a fine record. There are suggestions that the Adelaide pitch will favour India as it is known to turn and the visitors may play two spinners at the expense of a batsmen. The opening pair of RP Singh and Irfan Pathan will also find conditions to their liking as it is a pitch ripe for reverse swing, something the India bowlers did to great effect in Perth when they out-bowled the home side. Aiming for seam movement is more of an Australian trait than weaving it through the air, although they have been trying to improve their methods since 2005. "It's something we've worked on with [the bowling coach] Troy Cooley," Stuart Clark said. "It's important for some places and one of the things to do to make us better cricketers." Can Australia really lose two in a row? After the furuore following the second Test plus the absence of Hayden they showed that they can be vulnerable but expect them to fire this time round. Captain Ponting is due a big game - he has had a disaster with the bat - averaging just 21.33 from his six innings with a top score of 55. Take him to put all those troubles behind him and come out on top. He is 7/2 with Totesport to be the top scorer for Australia and 15/2 with Bet365 to be the Man of the Match - both prices well worth backing. Verdict: 2pts Ponting top Australia batsmen @ 7/2 (Totesport); 1pt Ponting Man of the Match @ 15/2 (Bet365) Click here for a free Totesport £25 to bet on cricket with Totesport