The Crossbill Sports Desk
Australia’s fiery pace attack dominated India on day two of the fourth Test, as the hosts set a commanding first-innings total of 474, leaving India in deep trouble at 164/5 at stumps, trailing by 310 runs.
Steve Smith’s superb 140 anchored Australia’s innings, with the visitors’ fightback thwarted late in the day.
Resuming at 311/6, Australia extended their lead with Smith leading from the front. Alongside Pat Cummins, who made a valuable 49, Smith added 112 runs for the seventh wicket, ensuring a sizeable total.
His century, brought up with a boundary off Nitish Kumar Reddy, marked his second in consecutive Tests and put him alongside the likes of Sunil Gavaskar and Brian Lara with 34 Test hundreds.
Smith’s innings was eventually cut short by an inside edge off Akash Deep, which deflected onto the stumps. The tail then folded quickly, with Mitchell Starc (15) and Nathan Lyon (13) falling, while Ravindra Jadeja (3/78) and Jasprit Bumrah (4/99) were the pick of the bowlers for India.
India’s reply got off to a rocky start, and though Yashasvi Jaiswal’s fluent 82 provided a glimmer of hope, it was short-lived. Jaiswal, who had played some elegant shots, was run out in bizarre fashion following a mix-up with Virat Kohli.
The pair were involved in a quick single off Scott Boland, but Kohli, hesitant to run, left Jaiswal stranded at the non-striker's end, and the young opener was sent back to the pavilion.
Kohli himself was dismissed for 36, caught behind off Boland, and soon after, Akash Deep was dismissed for a duck by the same bowler. Rohit Sharma’s continued struggles also contributed to India’s woes, with the captain falling for just three, misjudging a pull shot off Cummins and offering a simple catch to Boland at mid-on. Boland’s timely strikes left India in a precarious position.
Rishabh Pant (6*) and Ravindra Jadeja (4*) will resume on day three with India hoping for a recovery, but with three late wickets falling on day two, Australia is firmly in control.
With the series evenly poised at 1-1, India needs to regroup quickly, having been outplayed with both bat and ball on day two.
The five-match series, which has seen India’s dominant win in Perth, Australia’s resounding victory in Adelaide, and the rain-affected draw in Brisbane, now hangs in the balance as both teams aim to take the lead in this crucial contest.
Steve Smith’s superb 140 anchored Australia’s innings, with the visitors’ fightback thwarted late in the day.
Resuming at 311/6, Australia extended their lead with Smith leading from the front. Alongside Pat Cummins, who made a valuable 49, Smith added 112 runs for the seventh wicket, ensuring a sizeable total.
His century, brought up with a boundary off Nitish Kumar Reddy, marked his second in consecutive Tests and put him alongside the likes of Sunil Gavaskar and Brian Lara with 34 Test hundreds.
Smith’s innings was eventually cut short by an inside edge off Akash Deep, which deflected onto the stumps. The tail then folded quickly, with Mitchell Starc (15) and Nathan Lyon (13) falling, while Ravindra Jadeja (3/78) and Jasprit Bumrah (4/99) were the pick of the bowlers for India.
India’s reply got off to a rocky start, and though Yashasvi Jaiswal’s fluent 82 provided a glimmer of hope, it was short-lived. Jaiswal, who had played some elegant shots, was run out in bizarre fashion following a mix-up with Virat Kohli.
The pair were involved in a quick single off Scott Boland, but Kohli, hesitant to run, left Jaiswal stranded at the non-striker's end, and the young opener was sent back to the pavilion.
Kohli himself was dismissed for 36, caught behind off Boland, and soon after, Akash Deep was dismissed for a duck by the same bowler. Rohit Sharma’s continued struggles also contributed to India’s woes, with the captain falling for just three, misjudging a pull shot off Cummins and offering a simple catch to Boland at mid-on. Boland’s timely strikes left India in a precarious position.
Rishabh Pant (6*) and Ravindra Jadeja (4*) will resume on day three with India hoping for a recovery, but with three late wickets falling on day two, Australia is firmly in control.
With the series evenly poised at 1-1, India needs to regroup quickly, having been outplayed with both bat and ball on day two.
The five-match series, which has seen India’s dominant win in Perth, Australia’s resounding victory in Adelaide, and the rain-affected draw in Brisbane, now hangs in the balance as both teams aim to take the lead in this crucial contest.
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