Whitewash, clean sweep, shutout. Whatever you like to call it, Australia were on track for a 4-0 series victory over India by stumps on the fourth day in Adelaide. Four wickets stood between Michael Clarke’s men and the completion of a remarkable feat. India finished the day needing a further 334 for victory, but a comeback from Kapil Dev is more likely than one from India in this match.

At stumps India were 6 for 166, having been set a target of 500. To put that in perspective, the highest successful chase in all of Test history was 418 by West Indies in Antigua nine years ago. The best in Adelaide was the 315 that Joe Darling’s Australia chased down against England 110 years ago. In the past century, the highest Test chase in Adelaide was less than half of what India required in this innings.

Ishant Sharma was at the crease on 2 and Wriddhiman Saha was yet to score when India walked off, any minuscule hope they had having disappeared along with VVS Laxman and Virat Kohli in the dying stages. Laxman and Kohli had steadied, relatively speaking, with a 52-run partnership when Laxman fell victim to his own wristy tendencies.