India performed poorly with the bat on Day 1 of the third Test against Australia, getting all out for a low total of 109, their fourth-lowest Test total against Australia at home.
Spinner Matthew Kuhnemann claimed a five-wicket haul, while Nathan Lyon added a three-wicket haul to bundle out the Rohit Sharma-led team for a poor score of 109. Australia, which was behind 0-2 in the series, came out strong and determined to finish the day with 156 for 4, gaining a 47-run advantage.
For the first time in this series, India’s captain Rohit won the toss, and he naturally chose to bat first at the Holkar Stadium. The hosts have made a few adjustments, dropping KL Rahul and resting Mohammed Shami. They have replaced them with Shubman Gill and Umesh Yadav. Pat Cummins and Matthew Renshaw were replaced by Mitchell Starc and Cameron Green in Australia as they made some tweaks as well.
Australia introduced left-arm spinner Kuhnemann after just five overs of pace bowling, and he dismissed both of India’s openers, Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill, in his first two overs. Before a brief partnership between Virat Kohli and Srikar Bharat, India was quickly reduced to 45/5 as the Australian bowlers continued their onslaught.
Although Kohlie tried to stabilize the series, he too became a victim of Australia’s spin attack and lost his wickets to right-arm off-break bowler Todd Murphy. After Kohli’s dismissal, the Indian team completely surrendered to the spin trio, bundling out on the low score of 109/10 inside 34 overs.
Although it was a little too late, Ravindra Jadeja brought India back into the game
With four wickets on the opening day, India’s all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja set a new record and helped his team regain the lead. The 34-year-old Indian batsman became the second to accumulate 5000 runs and 500 wickets in international cricket after dismissing Aussie opener Travis Head.
During his long career, renowned India skipper Kapil Dev amassed 9,031 runs in international play and 687 wickets (434 in Tests and 253 in ODIs), making him the first Indian to accomplish this incredible accomplishment.
On the first day of the Indore Test, Jadeja took four wickets and single-handedly got India back into the match. All four of India’s wickets were taken by Jadeja (4/63); the other bowlers were unable to add their names to the list of wicket- takers. As a result of a no-ball, Jadeja wasted a chance to dismiss Marnus Labuschagne on duck after dismissing Head in his first over.
But, in the final session, Jadeja was able to spin his web around the top Australian hitters, removing Labuschagne and Usman Khawaja in quick succession. Although both were out before the end, Australia was already 47 runs ahead.
The Indian spinner also removed Steve Smith before the end of the play to assist India in getting back into the game. The acting Australian skipper was caught behind by wicketkeeper KS Bharat for 26 after failing to read Jadeja once again in the series.
With a brilliant start to the third test, Australia is close to WTC qualification
Australia now holds the top rank with 75.56% of the total points. India follows with 58.93% points, and South Africa and Sri Lanka are still in the running for a spot in the championship game. To guarantee a spot in the championship game for Australia, they must draw at least one game against India.
India must defeat their opponent by a score of 3-1 or greater in the ongoing series to advance. If not, the outcome of the two-match series between Sri Lanka and New Zealand will be taken into consideration. So, it is obvious that Australia and India will depend on this series to secure their places in the top two. Given that everything is on the line for the two champion teams, we should expect a thrilling show of cricket on the second day.