Session 1 : Australia
Session 2 : Australia
Session 3 : Pitch
Over All : Australia : 3/3
Despite Umesh Yadav's three-wicket haul on Day 2, Steve Smith again proved the elusive wicket for India as the new captain fashioned an Australian fightback. Smith, who was not dismissed by India in last week's Adelaide Test, with scores of 162 and 52, continued to be the bane of the tourists with another defiant knock. At the close, with a fierce storm about to break, Australia were 221 for four in reply to India's 408 with Smith unbeaten on 65 and Mitchell Marsh on seven.
In the first session on Day 2, debutant, Josh Hazlewood captured five wickets and Brad Haddin equalled a wicket-keeping record (6 catches) as Australia dismissed India for 408 at lunch. Australia lost the wickets of David Warner (29), Shane Watson (25), Chris Rogers (55) and Shaun Marsh (32) in the final two sessions before Smith essayed an unbeaten knock.
Smith will look to carry on and close in on the deficit. On the other hand, India will seek to make early inroads and wrap up the Australian innings quickly to reach a strong position from where they could dictate terms.
Ishant Sharma delivered an early breakthrough on Day 3, dismissing Mitchell Marsh in the 57th over. The 23-year-old shouldered arms to a delivery that nipped back in and saw the ball crash onto the stumps to depart on 11. Australia were 232/5.
Smith batted in a steady manner as he tried to hold the Australian innings together. However, the hosts suffered another setback as Varun Aaron got the wicket of Brad Haddin in the 62nd over. The Indians employed the short-ball strategy against the wicket-keeper batsman and it worked well for them. Aaron bowled a well-directed short delivery from round the wicket and Haddin was in an awkward position when he tried to fend the ball away and ended up handing a catch to Cheteshwar Pujara at short leg.
Mitchell Johnson, who was the next man in, hung around with Smith, aiding him in building a partnership. The found the boundaries regularly with Johnson taking the attack to the Indian pacers, especially Ishant, who was bowling wayward and also over-stepped few times. Meanwhile, Aaron, who dived to cut off a single, hurt his left shoulder. He was seen in some pain and walked off the field to get some attention. Smith soon entered the 90s with a boundary off Ashwin in the 68th over and this brought up the half-century stand for the 7th wicket. Johnson scored a four off Yadav in the following over to help Australia past 300 and two more boundaries in the same over helped the left-hander enter the 40s.
Johnson took the attack to Aaron in the 71st over, getting past fifty in style with three boundaries in a row. He got to his half-century off just 37 balls. In the 73rd over, Smith registered a superb ton, his 6th in Test cricket, by cutting Aaron past point for a four. As the Gabba stood up to applaud, Smith punched the air, removes his helmet and soaked in the applause. In getting to a hundred on his captaincy debut, Smith emulated Greg Chappell.
Smith scored a boundary off Aaron in the 75th over to bring up the century stand. Australia went into lunch at 351/6, trailing by 57 runs, with Smith and Johnson having put on 104 runs off just 87 balls. The Australian captain was unbeaten on 110 while the left-arm quick was on 67 not-out.
India had only themselves to blame as they let the initiative go after Haddin's wicket. Johnson, who was sledged by the Indians when he came in, counter-attacked brilliantly to put India under pressure, while Smith at the other end paced his innings well and got a hundred on captaincy debut. Unless India can pull up their socks in the second session, Australia might well end up with a handy lead.
Rohit Sharma and R Ashwin operated in tandem for a few overs but they could not do any damage as the Australian 7th wicket pair handled them with ease, continuing to score at a steady rate to reduce the deficit. The second new ball was taken as soon as it was available but that did not change things as far as Australia were concerned. There was a chance created when Johnson top-edged a pull off Yadav to third-man in the 83rd over. However, the fielder, Ishant misjudged it and the ball sailed over him for a four, which took Johnson into the 80s.
Johnson missed out on a well-deserved ton, falling to Ishant in the 88th over, 12 short of the three-figure mark. The left-hander chased a wide delivery outside-off, attempting a drive, but he ended up nicking it to Dhoni. The dismissal brought a partnership worth 148 runs to an end. Ishant struck again in the same over, dismissing Smith on 133. The Australian captain inside-edged the ball onto the stumps while looking to steer it to third man and was dismissed for the first time in the series.
Despite picking up two wickets in quick succession, India could not prevent Australia from taking the lead. Mitchell Starc, who came out with a positive intent, scored three runs off Aaron in the 89th over to power Australia past 400 before hitting Ishant for consecutive boundaries in the following over to help Australia take the lead. Starc also had a lucky break as Yadav dropped one off his own bowling in the 91st over and the pacer saw the next ball travel to the boundary. The over ended with Starc hitting another four after which umpire Marais Erasmus received some ice treatment from the Australian team doctor as he was struck on the wrist when Yadav dropped Starc.
Nathan Lyon too scored some useful runs, assisting Starc in extending the lead. The run-feast continued and a couple for Lyon off Aaron in the 95th over brought up the half-century stand. In the next over, Lyon flayed an Ashwin delivery to the on-side for a boundary to help Australia past 450. The 9th wicket stand came to an end in the 97th over when Lyon, trying to punch Aaron over the top, hit the ball straight to Rohit at mid-on to depart on 23.
With a single off Aaron in the 99th over, Starc took the lead to the 50-run mark. Hazlewood nicked one in the same over, but the ball landed just short of Ashwin at first slip. It was Dhoni's catch as the ball was only marginally to his left and a dive could have done the job for India, but the skipper did not move an inch. A couple of overs later, Ishant was late to react in his follow-thorough when Starc had top-edged a pull and the ball landed in no-man's land. Meanwhile, Hazlewood too helped himself to some runs, scoring a few boundaries as Australia's tail continued to wag.
The tea break was delayed as Australia were nine down, but India did not have any respite as they continued to leak runs. Starc moved to 49 with a boundary and a single off Ishant in the 105th over. At the end of the over, the ball was changed as it was out of shape. Starc then registered his 4th Test fifty with a single off Ashwin in the 106th over while the off-spinner was hit for a four by Hazlewood in the 108th over, which took Australia past 500. The hosts went into tea at 503/9, leading by 95 runs. Starc was unbeaten on 51 with Hazlewood giving him company on 31 not-out.
Ishant engineered a double strike, getting rid of both Smith and Johnson in the same over. However, Starc took over and guided Australia past the 500-mark, in the company of Lyon and Hazlewood. After suffering from heat distress on the opening day, Starc scored a fine fifty, turning the heat on India. Hazlewood is closing in on a fifty of his own. Will he make it a memorable debut with a fifty to follow his fifer?
Starc's defiance finally came to an end when he fell to R Ashwin after the tea break. Looking to heave across the line, the left-hander failed to make any contact with the ball and was bowled on 52. Australia finished with a total 505, taking a handy 97-run lead.
At one stage, Australia were 247/6 with Smith the only genuine batsman. However, the lower-order contributed substantially to take the total past 500. Johnson was involved in a record 7th wicket stand with his skipper. Then Starc put on useful stands of 56 and 51 with Lyon (23) and Hazlewood (32) respectively. Apart from the first hour of the day, the Indian bowlers looked flat. The short ball ploy against Johnson and Co. didn't work and by doing that they might have just fired up the Aussie bowlers. It is now upto the batsmen, first to survive the 30 odd overs today and to wipe out the deficit.
The Australian new-ball bowlers came hard at the Indian opening pair, but the in-form Murali Vijay got India off to a positive start. He was not afraid to play shots in the air, three such shots of Johnson might have given the Indian fans some nervous moments, but Vijay ensured that the scorecard was ticking. Shikhar Dhawan, on the other hand, was slightly tentative, struggling to middle the ball, but he too motored along at a steady pace.
Just when it looked like India were on course for a solid opening partnership, Murali Vijay dragged a Mitchell Starc delivery back onto the stumps to be out for 27. The ball bounced a bit extra than Vijay anticipated and the inside edge crashed into the middle stump. It turned out be a fine move by captain Steve Smith to bring on Starc as he got Australia the breakthrough with just his 9th ball after replacing Mitchell Johnson.
After dismissing Vijay, Australia bowled some tight overs and stemmed the run flow. Shane Watson, as he has done a number of times, bowled an excellent spell of 5-3-6-0, keeping the batsmen calm by bowling in the corridor of uncertainty. He also beat the bat on a few occasions and came very close to finding the outside of Cheteshwar Pujara.
Shikhar Dhawan and Cheteshwar Pujara batted cautiously to help India close Day 3 at 71/1, 26 runs behind Australia's first innings total. With India putting up a determined display with the bat in their second essay, the game is still nicely poised and the morning session on Day 4 holds crucial for both sides.
Session 2 : Australia
Session 3 : Pitch
Over All : Australia : 3/3
Despite Umesh Yadav's three-wicket haul on Day 2, Steve Smith again proved the elusive wicket for India as the new captain fashioned an Australian fightback. Smith, who was not dismissed by India in last week's Adelaide Test, with scores of 162 and 52, continued to be the bane of the tourists with another defiant knock. At the close, with a fierce storm about to break, Australia were 221 for four in reply to India's 408 with Smith unbeaten on 65 and Mitchell Marsh on seven.
In the first session on Day 2, debutant, Josh Hazlewood captured five wickets and Brad Haddin equalled a wicket-keeping record (6 catches) as Australia dismissed India for 408 at lunch. Australia lost the wickets of David Warner (29), Shane Watson (25), Chris Rogers (55) and Shaun Marsh (32) in the final two sessions before Smith essayed an unbeaten knock.
Smith will look to carry on and close in on the deficit. On the other hand, India will seek to make early inroads and wrap up the Australian innings quickly to reach a strong position from where they could dictate terms.
Ishant Sharma delivered an early breakthrough on Day 3, dismissing Mitchell Marsh in the 57th over. The 23-year-old shouldered arms to a delivery that nipped back in and saw the ball crash onto the stumps to depart on 11. Australia were 232/5.
Smith batted in a steady manner as he tried to hold the Australian innings together. However, the hosts suffered another setback as Varun Aaron got the wicket of Brad Haddin in the 62nd over. The Indians employed the short-ball strategy against the wicket-keeper batsman and it worked well for them. Aaron bowled a well-directed short delivery from round the wicket and Haddin was in an awkward position when he tried to fend the ball away and ended up handing a catch to Cheteshwar Pujara at short leg.
Mitchell Johnson, who was the next man in, hung around with Smith, aiding him in building a partnership. The found the boundaries regularly with Johnson taking the attack to the Indian pacers, especially Ishant, who was bowling wayward and also over-stepped few times. Meanwhile, Aaron, who dived to cut off a single, hurt his left shoulder. He was seen in some pain and walked off the field to get some attention. Smith soon entered the 90s with a boundary off Ashwin in the 68th over and this brought up the half-century stand for the 7th wicket. Johnson scored a four off Yadav in the following over to help Australia past 300 and two more boundaries in the same over helped the left-hander enter the 40s.
Johnson took the attack to Aaron in the 71st over, getting past fifty in style with three boundaries in a row. He got to his half-century off just 37 balls. In the 73rd over, Smith registered a superb ton, his 6th in Test cricket, by cutting Aaron past point for a four. As the Gabba stood up to applaud, Smith punched the air, removes his helmet and soaked in the applause. In getting to a hundred on his captaincy debut, Smith emulated Greg Chappell.
Smith scored a boundary off Aaron in the 75th over to bring up the century stand. Australia went into lunch at 351/6, trailing by 57 runs, with Smith and Johnson having put on 104 runs off just 87 balls. The Australian captain was unbeaten on 110 while the left-arm quick was on 67 not-out.
India had only themselves to blame as they let the initiative go after Haddin's wicket. Johnson, who was sledged by the Indians when he came in, counter-attacked brilliantly to put India under pressure, while Smith at the other end paced his innings well and got a hundred on captaincy debut. Unless India can pull up their socks in the second session, Australia might well end up with a handy lead.
Rohit Sharma and R Ashwin operated in tandem for a few overs but they could not do any damage as the Australian 7th wicket pair handled them with ease, continuing to score at a steady rate to reduce the deficit. The second new ball was taken as soon as it was available but that did not change things as far as Australia were concerned. There was a chance created when Johnson top-edged a pull off Yadav to third-man in the 83rd over. However, the fielder, Ishant misjudged it and the ball sailed over him for a four, which took Johnson into the 80s.
Johnson missed out on a well-deserved ton, falling to Ishant in the 88th over, 12 short of the three-figure mark. The left-hander chased a wide delivery outside-off, attempting a drive, but he ended up nicking it to Dhoni. The dismissal brought a partnership worth 148 runs to an end. Ishant struck again in the same over, dismissing Smith on 133. The Australian captain inside-edged the ball onto the stumps while looking to steer it to third man and was dismissed for the first time in the series.
Despite picking up two wickets in quick succession, India could not prevent Australia from taking the lead. Mitchell Starc, who came out with a positive intent, scored three runs off Aaron in the 89th over to power Australia past 400 before hitting Ishant for consecutive boundaries in the following over to help Australia take the lead. Starc also had a lucky break as Yadav dropped one off his own bowling in the 91st over and the pacer saw the next ball travel to the boundary. The over ended with Starc hitting another four after which umpire Marais Erasmus received some ice treatment from the Australian team doctor as he was struck on the wrist when Yadav dropped Starc.
Nathan Lyon too scored some useful runs, assisting Starc in extending the lead. The run-feast continued and a couple for Lyon off Aaron in the 95th over brought up the half-century stand. In the next over, Lyon flayed an Ashwin delivery to the on-side for a boundary to help Australia past 450. The 9th wicket stand came to an end in the 97th over when Lyon, trying to punch Aaron over the top, hit the ball straight to Rohit at mid-on to depart on 23.
With a single off Aaron in the 99th over, Starc took the lead to the 50-run mark. Hazlewood nicked one in the same over, but the ball landed just short of Ashwin at first slip. It was Dhoni's catch as the ball was only marginally to his left and a dive could have done the job for India, but the skipper did not move an inch. A couple of overs later, Ishant was late to react in his follow-thorough when Starc had top-edged a pull and the ball landed in no-man's land. Meanwhile, Hazlewood too helped himself to some runs, scoring a few boundaries as Australia's tail continued to wag.
The tea break was delayed as Australia were nine down, but India did not have any respite as they continued to leak runs. Starc moved to 49 with a boundary and a single off Ishant in the 105th over. At the end of the over, the ball was changed as it was out of shape. Starc then registered his 4th Test fifty with a single off Ashwin in the 106th over while the off-spinner was hit for a four by Hazlewood in the 108th over, which took Australia past 500. The hosts went into tea at 503/9, leading by 95 runs. Starc was unbeaten on 51 with Hazlewood giving him company on 31 not-out.
Ishant engineered a double strike, getting rid of both Smith and Johnson in the same over. However, Starc took over and guided Australia past the 500-mark, in the company of Lyon and Hazlewood. After suffering from heat distress on the opening day, Starc scored a fine fifty, turning the heat on India. Hazlewood is closing in on a fifty of his own. Will he make it a memorable debut with a fifty to follow his fifer?
Starc's defiance finally came to an end when he fell to R Ashwin after the tea break. Looking to heave across the line, the left-hander failed to make any contact with the ball and was bowled on 52. Australia finished with a total 505, taking a handy 97-run lead.
At one stage, Australia were 247/6 with Smith the only genuine batsman. However, the lower-order contributed substantially to take the total past 500. Johnson was involved in a record 7th wicket stand with his skipper. Then Starc put on useful stands of 56 and 51 with Lyon (23) and Hazlewood (32) respectively. Apart from the first hour of the day, the Indian bowlers looked flat. The short ball ploy against Johnson and Co. didn't work and by doing that they might have just fired up the Aussie bowlers. It is now upto the batsmen, first to survive the 30 odd overs today and to wipe out the deficit.
The Australian new-ball bowlers came hard at the Indian opening pair, but the in-form Murali Vijay got India off to a positive start. He was not afraid to play shots in the air, three such shots of Johnson might have given the Indian fans some nervous moments, but Vijay ensured that the scorecard was ticking. Shikhar Dhawan, on the other hand, was slightly tentative, struggling to middle the ball, but he too motored along at a steady pace.
Just when it looked like India were on course for a solid opening partnership, Murali Vijay dragged a Mitchell Starc delivery back onto the stumps to be out for 27. The ball bounced a bit extra than Vijay anticipated and the inside edge crashed into the middle stump. It turned out be a fine move by captain Steve Smith to bring on Starc as he got Australia the breakthrough with just his 9th ball after replacing Mitchell Johnson.
After dismissing Vijay, Australia bowled some tight overs and stemmed the run flow. Shane Watson, as he has done a number of times, bowled an excellent spell of 5-3-6-0, keeping the batsmen calm by bowling in the corridor of uncertainty. He also beat the bat on a few occasions and came very close to finding the outside of Cheteshwar Pujara.
Shikhar Dhawan and Cheteshwar Pujara batted cautiously to help India close Day 3 at 71/1, 26 runs behind Australia's first innings total. With India putting up a determined display with the bat in their second essay, the game is still nicely poised and the morning session on Day 4 holds crucial for both sides.