NAGPUR, 30 October 2004 — World champions Australia conquered the final frontier here yesterday when they won their first series on Indian soil in 35 years with a 342-run rout of the home team in the third Test here. India, needing to bat out five sessions for a draw after being set an improbable victory target of 543, were shot out for 200 shortly before stumps on the fourth day.

Jason Gillespie picked up 4-24 for a match haul of nine wickets and Glenn McGrath, Michael Kasprowicz and Shane Warne took two each to hand India their worst Test defeat in terms of runs.

India’s previous low was the 329-run loss to Hansie Cronje’s South Africa at the Eden Gardens in 1996. India’s top batsmen submitted meekly to the fired-up rivals, being reduced to 37-5 by the 16th over before the lower order put up a brave resistence to add 163 runs.

Virender Sehwag and Parthiv Patel put on 65 for the sixth wicket and Ajit Agarkar (44 not out) and Zaheer Khan (25) delayed the inevitable by adding 52 for the last wicket.

Sehwag, dropped by Justin Langer in the slips before he had scored, made 58, while Patel chipped in with a gutsy 32.

India’s late charge finally ended when Zaheer holed out in the deep off Warne to leave the Australians celebrating in mid-pitch.

Australia, who considered India the final frontier for their world-beating side after failing to win a series here since 1969, took a decisive 2-0 lead in the four-match rubber with the emphatic win.

The tourists won the first Test in Bangalore by 217 runs while the second in Madras was drawn after the fifth day’s play was washed out.

The fourth and final Test begins at the Wankhede stadium in Bombay on Wednesday.

Gillespie, who took five wickets in the first innings, began the destruction when he uprooted Akash Chopra’s middle stump and stand-in captain Rahul Dravid’s leg stump to reduce India to 9-2 by the sixth over.

Sachin Tendulkar, who made eight in the first innings on his return to international cricket after a tennis elbow injury, was snapped up by McGrath for two. Tendulkar, still battling for form after a three-month lay-off, fended at a short ball and was caught by Damien Martyn at point to give McGrath his 450th Test wicket.

Venkatsai Laxman was jeered off the field by some 15,000 angry home fans at the Vidarbha Cricket Association (VCA) ground when he hooked the first ball from Michael Kasprowicz down McGrath’s throat at fine leg.

Laxman, a scourge of Australian bowlers in the past, has scores of 31, 3, 4, 13, and 2 in five innings of the current series.

Kasprowicz then picked up Mohammad Kaif for seven, edging a catch to the wicketkeeper, as India slumped to 37-5 in the 16th over. Kaif had topscored with 55 in India’s modest first innings total of 185.

Warne, Test cricket’s most successful bowler, ended Sehwag’s defiance when he forced the flamboyant batsman to miscue a catch to Michael Clarke in the covers.

Earlier, Martyn missed a third consecutive century by three runs as the Australians went for the runs in the morning session after resuming their second innings at 202-3.

The tourists declared at 329-5 just before lunch when Martyn was caught behind off Zaheer for 97. Martyn, who hit 104 in the second innings of the Madras Test and 114 in the first innings here, agonizingly missed his 10th century. But he was declared the man of the match.

He and Clarke boosted Australia’s total with a 148-run stand for the fourth wicket in 130 minutes. Clarke, who scored a century on debut in the first Test, hit 73 off 95 balls with 11 boundaries and a six.

Captain Adam Gilchrist attributed Australia’s win to weeks of planning and preparation. “It’s a wonderful occasion and it’s wonderful to share it with a great bunch of people,” Gilchrist told reporters

“It’s an emotional time and a reward for lots of hard work and preparation.”

Under Steve Waugh, Australia lost their previous Test series in India in 2001 2-1 after winning the first match by 10 wickets.

“There was a lot of heartache a few years ago but this is a fulfilling experience and a big achievement,” added Gilchrist, who captained Australia in the absence of the injured Ricky Ponting. “We’ve been thinking of people back home and thinking of Steve Waugh straight away. I had said earlier that was not bigger than any other series, but it is very special.

“On our last trip, we should’ve switched off the gas a little bit. All we knew back then was how to win and someone needed to tell us to slow down a little bit.”

Gilchrist said this series win had finally given Australia the belief that they could win anywhere. “Now we have the knowledge and the experience. We know that we can win in any conditions.”