Report of day four
with the news that overshadowed the action at the SCG
Close on day four: India need 309 to win
This has been another belter for Australia, who are in charge entering the fifth and final day at the SCG. That first-innings lead helped immeasurably and Labuschagne and Smith made their half centuries this morning and Cummins in sparkling form this afternoon. Hazlewood was a whisker behind him and Lyon has given Pujara much to think about. Rohit, after a commendable 50, was left to rue another thrown-away potential ton.
The hosts need eight, likely only seven, wickets to win. But that does not mean they are a sure thing if Rahane and Pujara can rack up a score between them.
Of course, all of this was spoiled by an off-field incident, when play was stopped for eight minutes to deal with another allegation of abuse from Indian quick Siraj. We will likely here more on that tomorrow. Until then, thanks and goodnight.
34th over: India 98-2 (Pujara 9, Rahane 4)
Lyon bowls the final over of the day and Rahane leaves the first that spins in from length. This is how it starts and finishes, Rahane puts up the barricades and that is stumps.
33rd over: India 98-2 (Pujara 9, Rahane 4)
As it stands, India will have to bat out of their skins on Monday to redeem this. Cummins is bowling to Rahane. A no ball is followed by good length and a shorter one that Rahane steers through the gap between the slips and gully.
32nd over: India 94-2 (Pujara 9, Rahane 1)
Pujara is labouring against Lyon, blocking and defending tentatively as Lyon lands his best wide of off and spinning in with venom. Unsuccessful appeal for lbw.
Wicket! Rohit c Starc b Cummins 52, India 92-2
I may have jinxed that because the very next ball is Rohit’s last. Again he fails to convert another strong start. Facing Cummins, it is one of his favourite shots that seals his demise as he goes for a pull shot a little too energetically but cannot keep it down. Starc takes the catch on his knees.
Rahane, clearly opting against a nightwatchman. strolls to the crease and opens his account with a single before Pujara is ALMOST caught. A Cummins corker has Pujara on the back foot and he pops it up but somehow gets away with it.
Fifty for Rohit!
30th over: India 92-1 (Rohit 52, Pujara 8)
Rohit’s weight is forward and he is working Lyon’s spin with nothing to show from the first three deliveries but the fourth is an easy-as-you-like flick over midwicket for a four. Only five from this over but this could yet be a big knock.
29th over: India 87-1 (Rohit 47, Pujara 8)
Cummins is back. Can the top-ranked Test bowler take a scalp to end day four? It would be a circuit-breaker. There’s a little swing as he forces Rohit to defend and settle for a lone single off his last.
28th over: India 86-1 (Rohit 46, Pujara 8)
We are not too far away from stumps now as Pujara, who comes up with nothing in the first four balls against Lyon, takes a quick triple through mid-wicket.
27th over: India 82-1 (Rohit 45, Pujara 5)
Rohit is going great guns and will have 50 before the end of today’s play. A small hiccup here when he goes a little too early on a pull shot that is, luckily for him, too close for alls short of the forward-running Labuschagne at midwicket.
26th over: India 80-1 (Rohit 43, Pujara 5)
Pujara gets off the mark with a boundary and there is a sense India should not be afraid of this pitch, even if they are off their opponents’ attack. He drives Lyon through extra cover and pops the next up for a single before Rohit adds another.
25th over: India 71-1 (Rohit 39, Pujara 0)
Another maiden as Pujara proceeds with caution, turning Hazlewood defensively on the leg- side, one towards mid-on, letting another go. That is the third straight maiden and second on the trot for Hazlewood.
24th over: India 71-1 (Rohit 39, Pujara 0)
Lyon bowls a maiden to a defensive Rohit.
Wicket! Gill c Paine b Hazlewood 31, India 71-1
And there it is. It is a breakthrough the hosts had been after. Hazlewood is in the attack and nicks Gill off his first ball on its way through to Paine. There is a review but Hotspot confirms without doubt.
Pujara emerges and heads to the crease as Hazlewood goes about his business in an excellent over that saw Pujara given out lbw and overturned on review due to being high.
22nd over: India 71-0 (Rohit 39, Gill 31)
This, I am reading, is India’s first 50-plus fourth-innings opening partnership away from home since Wasim Jaffer and Virender Sehwag put together 109 against West Indies in Basseterre in 2006.
Having said that, Australia’s bowling attack will not be governed forever. A wicket is surely in the off and ...
21th over: India 70-0 (Rohit 39, Gill 30)
Green is up again and so is Rohit, who keeps pulling brilliant shots and takes another six with aggression and ease.
20th over: India 64-0 (Rohit 33, Gill 30)
Rohit provides the shot of the innings thus far, an exquisite cover drive off a Starc half-volley. Rohit adds a boundary and another three for an 11-run over.
19th over: India 53-0 (Rohit 22, Gill 30)
Green takes up the ball. Will we witness greatness? He serves up a harmless short one and Gill calmly takes two, has no luck for the ensuing four balls and then bangs one for four as Australia veinly gives chase. That’s a 50 from that opening partnership.
18th over: India 47-0 (Rohit 22, Gill 24)
India’s top order are keeping their composure, Rohit defending forward and Gill stealing a single after finding himself lucky to get the slightest of an inside edge of his pad on an otherwise plumb delivery.
Four of the current team (Sharma, Pujara, Rahane, Jadeja) were playing when India were last set 407 to win a Test match, at Auckland 7 years ago. And a creditable effort they made too, getting to 366 before succumbing.
— Ric Finlay (@RicFinlay) January 10, 2021
17th over: India 46-0 (Rohit 22, Gill 23)
Right on cue, Rohit bumps Cummins superbly through covers for four BUT not before he finds himself the subject of a near run-out. There is not much bounce on this Cummins delivery and gets hit on the pads as instead of hitting it with hit bat. As the ball skews to second slip. He briefly leaves his crease and an appeal goes upstairs but he sneaks back in in the nick of time.
Vigilance in the field by Steve Smith! A slow to retreat Rohit almost found himself heading back to the pavilion. #AUSvIND pic.twitter.com/Hdzgc4iABj
— News Cricket (@NewsCorpCricket) January 10, 2021
16th over: India 42-0 (Rohit 18, Gill 23)
India are quite literally taking it ball by ball. If they can make it to the end of today’s play without losing a wicket there could yet be hope for the tourists. The backs-against-the-wall approach has worked before. Australia wouldn’t feeling even a hint pressure as yet, but this is a psychological game is cricket.
15th over: India 40-0 (Rohit 17, Gill 22)
Rohit was using his fancy feet against Lyon last over but he can do no such thing against Cummins, who bowls a maiden.
14th over: India 40-0 (Rohit 18, Gill 22)
Here is our latest on the alleged incident of abuse from Christopher Knaus:
13th over: India 39-0 (Rohit 17, Gill 22)
Cummins is making his inquiries at off stump and is bouncing his way down to Gill, who is biding his time. And hey, it pays off as Gill channels one to the fine-leg boundary for a four.
Another cheeky four follows as Gill plays Cummins late, past first and only slip and to the fence. Some second prior to that Australia had two slips in place, probably could have had three.
12th over: India 31-0 (Rohit 17, Gill 14)
Gill takes one run off Lyon’s opening over, hanging back in his crease and then flicking it through square leg.
11th over: India 29-0 (Rohit 16, Gill 13)
India are in an unenviable position here. It seems so much of their tactical approach is built around a big top-order score in their first innings. Rahane took care of that in Melbourne through his century but in Sydney they have only had those half centuries from Gill and Pujara, which nowhere near offset Australia’s Smith-led first innings. Kohli, wherefore art though, Kohli? So here they are, hanging on, clinging to that hope of a draw.
Rohit takes a paltry single from a Cummins over as Lyon steps up.
9th over: India 26-0 (Rohit 14, Gill 12)
This time it's Australia who review, but fail to get a not out overturned and it's still none down #AUSvIND pic.twitter.com/7qUx9kpr6E
— 7Cricket (@7Cricket) January 10, 2021
8th over: India 25-0 (Rohit 14, Gill 11)
Drama! Rohit is given out lbw butball tracking has it sailing well high. He is adjudged not out and tries it on again with a pull shot for a single.
There is another unsuccessful appeal as Australia take a review against Gill for caught behind, with Hazlewood appearing convinced he had found the inside edge to Paine. It is not to be. Hotspot and Snicko show nothing and there is some action between the ball and his pad flaps.
7th over: India 23-0 (Rohit 13, Gill 10)
The seas have parted and the all-powerful Pat Cummins is injected into the attack and he forces Gill to remain back in his crease. He keeps the Indian runless for four balls only to be hit for four in the fifth off Gill’s back foot.
Updated
6th over: India 19-0 (Rohit 13, Gill 6)
Hazlewood bowls a near-maiden as Gill makes a single run. A reminder that we won’t be seeing either Pant ot Jadeja this innings after the pair sustained an elbvow injury and dislocated left thumb respectively. Yesterday truly was a horrid day for the tourists.
5th over: India 18-0 (Rohit 13, Gill 5)
Rohit is opening his face of the bat and steers Starc off for four. The Australian quick tries his luck with a short delivery but it is wide. Green, meanwhile, is giving chase, versatile character that he is. Gill pulls it through square leg for a single to end the over.
3rd over: India 6-0 (Rohit 5, Gill 1)
Starc’s first over did not set the world on fire and he is lacking a little on the swing as Rohit drills it straight back, eliciting a little playful gesticulation from his Australia counterpart. The batsman takes the leading edge through short third man for a couple of runs. Hazlewood takes up the ball for the fourth over.
1st over: India 4-0 (Rohit 3, Gill 1)
Here we go.
Starc is up first with the new ball, no doubt with that variable bounce mind, and Rohit is straight off the mark. The ball hits the toe of his bat but he commits to the shot for a couple of runs to start the innings.
You said it, GL.
Having to call a Test match to a halt because spectators are yelling racist abuse. At players who have given up months of their lives so we can have a season. This is a national shame.
— Geoff Lemon Sport (@GeoffLemonSport) January 10, 2021
Here is the full statement just in from Cricket Australia:
Cricket Australia has reaffirmed its zero-tolerance policy towards discriminatory behaviour in all forms following the alleged racial abuse of members of the Indian cricket squad by a section of the crowd at the Sydney Cricket Ground on Saturday.
Sean Carroll, Cricket Australia’s Head of Integrity and Security, said anyone who sought to vilify and/or harass had no place in Australian cricket.
“Cricket Australia condemns in the strongest terms possible all discriminatory behaviour,” Carroll said. “If you engage in racist abuse, you are not welcome in Australian cricket.
“CA is awaiting the outcome of the International Cricket Council’s investigation into the matter reported at the SCG on Saturday. Once those responsible are identified, CA will take the strongest measures possible under our Anti-Harassment Code, including lengthy bans, further sanctions and referral to NSW Police.
“As series hosts, we unreservedly apologise to our friends in the Indian cricket team and assure them we will prosecute the matter to its fullest extent.”
Kerrie Mather, Venues NSW’s Chief Executive, said CCTV footage was being reviewed to assist the ICC investigation.
“At the SCG, we pride ourselves on welcoming anyone and everyone in a safe and inclusive environment,” Mather said.
“We are taking this extremely seriously. If those involved are identified, they will be banned from the SCG and all Venues NSW properties under our Act.”
Australia declare!
The tourists need 407 runs to win.
Wicket! Green c Saha b Bumrah 84, Australia 312-6
Just in time for tea, Green has met his match and Bumrah finally has a wicket after some serious toil. The former clears his front leg and swings across the line, only a touch of an inside edge but Saha appealed immediately. He was the only one, and Green challenges, but Snicko shows the smallest of spikes and that will finish this tale of enchantment.
It followed yet another Green six and a four to complete a fine innings. He flicked that switch to turn it on for Australia and dazzled he did, needing only 16 runs for a maiden century. Due to that unfortunate off-field incident he simply ran out of time.
Here is one of his four sixes, for your leisure ...
The first of Cameron Green's four sixes - down the track to the new ball if you don't mind! #OhWhatAFeeling@Toyota_Aus | #AUSvIND pic.twitter.com/vHJBjOOBZG
— cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) January 10, 2021
Updated
The police officers appear to be speaking with some fans sitting in the area from which Siraj heard the complaint. Shortly afterwards, a small group of men are escorted from the ground.
In case you missed it, this is the second complaint of racism in as many days after Siraj and Bumrah reported racial taunts on Saturday. Let’s hope this is the last of this. It has certainly dampened the vibe in the middle.
86th over: Australia 301-5 (Green 74, Paine 38)
Play has stopped now amid what appears to be another allegation of racial abuse from a part of the SCG crowd. Bumrah was just about to bowl when Siraj approaches the umpire while gesturing towards the stand. The umpires are at the boundary and speaking with security officials, and police officers have turned up.
86th over: Australia 301-5 (Green 74, Paine 38)
Green is playing T20 now and wallops back-to-back sixes. The first is the real cracker, a sweet-spot shot over long on and into the sparsely populated stands. The second, if we are nit-picking, is not quite as impressive and Siraj again delivers good length, but even a slight mishit has cleared the fence. Can the young man make it 100 before tea?
85th over: Australia 284-5 (Green 59, Paine 36)
Courtesy of some of these big hits, Australia now lead by 378. Tall task for the Indians, this will be. No team has ever chased down 300 or more at the SCG, so surviving rather than thriving should be the order of the final day and a bit. This over is good for two singles - one apiece.
84th over: Australia 282-5 (Green 58, Paine 35)
Green is about to better that though, launching an almighty one for six. It was clean and it was brutal, and Siraj has the look of a man who did not know that was coming. The 21-year-old is playing without fear.
Green makes 50!
83rd over: Australia 274-5 (Green 51, Paine 34)
There appears to be a new ball in Bumrah’s hand now and the movement off the seam is apparent. Green can’t get one away but then he does and it’s flicked just wide of gully and rolls away for a four. That will be the first of many for the Western Australian and some fine reward for a diligent shift so far.
Updated
82nd over: Australia 270-5 (Green 45, Paine 33)
Curiously, India have not yet taken the new ball despite bringing on fast bowlers from both ends. And. abit of gamesmanship with one ball left in the over as the groundsman runs out to take his mallet the ground again. He departs, and a deep Siraj delivery bounces off Green’s thigh pad to fine leg.
80th over: Australia 264-5 (Green 45, Paine 33)
Why thank you sir. Well Tim Paine says Australia will bat for another 10-15 minutes or so and see where they land. They must surely declare at tea. The wicket should, he says, have deteriorated just enough for Nathan Lyon.
Updated
79th over: Australia 258-5 (Green 44, Paine 29) Navdeep Saini to replace Bumrah, who must be weary of body and of heart. Green picks up a pull shot from outside off stump, not that short but he plays it almost off the front foot like Mitchell Marsh and pounds it for four. Adds a couple more with a push off the hip behind square leg.
Australia lead by 352 runs so far.
Alright, that’s enough cricket for me today. I’ll hand the duties over to Emma Kemp, making her OBO debut today. A welcoming round of applause, if you will.
78th over: Australia 252-5 (Green 38, Paine 29) Green backs away to Ashwin and tries to really pogo him, instead getting a bottom edge past leg stump for one. Ashwin gets one to keep very low to Paine, who keeps it out. Then tries a reverse sweep but straight to point. But after a couple of blocks he goes the reverse again, and nails this one for four through point.
77th over: Australia 247-5 (Green 37, Paine 25) Green drives a single, and Paine takes a different approach to Bumrah than to Ashwin, playing him cautiously and seeing him out.
76th over: Australia 246-5 (Green 36, Paine 25) The boundaries keep coming for Paine. Four of them in five balls, as he sweeps Ashwin fine before backing away and cutting him through point. In a hurry.
75th over: Australia 237-5 (Green 35, Paine 17) Bumrah bowls to Paine and another catch is dropped! Poor Jasprit Bumrah. He’s tired, he’s sore, he’s working hard for his team nonetheless, and he’s getting no support. This time Paine reaches and edges, low to about second slip where Rohit Sharma is standing wide of the keeper. The catch is low but it carries to his left, and he doesn’t get down in time. Through the hands for two runs. Paine rubs it in by driving through cover point for four, then even worse gets squared up by the sixth ball and edges four more. Along the ground past gully. Karma, sort this man out please.
74th over: Australia 227-5 (Green 35, Paine 7) Ashwin bowling and this batting pair are milking singles fairly well this over, then to finish it off Green skips down the track and whips over midwicket for four. He can bat with more freedom now with the lead at 321 and his captain probably not fussed if they get bowled out this session.
73rd over: Australia 220-5 (Green 30, Paine 5) There’s a new ball due in eight overs, but Jazzy Jasprit Bumrah is going to have a whirl now. Rahane must be hoping to break this partnership immediately and then really apply the squeeze. Naturally enough, Bumrah beats Green with his second ball, a good delivery seaming away. Then Bumrah goes shorter and Green splices just short of Vihari! He’s been brought in to short cover for exactly that sort of moment, and he dives forward well but it lands inches short. Bumrah and Vihari, it’s collectively not their day. A maiden over.
72nd over: Australia 220-5 (Green 30, Paine 5) Maybe a little edge into pad as Green pushes at Ashwin, the ball pops up towards short cover but there’s no one there. He follows up with a run to square leg, then Paine charges and aims to loft over long-on, but is beaten in flight and smears it squarer to deep midwicket on the bounce. One run. Green adds another just like his first, with less fuss.
71st over: Australia 217-5 (Green 28, Paine 4) A boundary for Green, not entirely deliberately, as he comes forward to block and gets a thick edge along the ground from Siraj through third man. He follows up with a single to point, then Paine forces the ball through cover to pick up his second brace.
Alex Greggery writes in. “Sorry to all the India doubters out there, but I have it on good authority that Pujara spent the lunch break watching Stokes at Headingley highlights, and is going to come out and obliterate some reverse-sweep sixes.”
70th over: Australia 210-5 (Green 23, Paine 2) Right then. Ashwin resets, focuses on a new right-hander, and proceeds. Pitching outside off, turning in. Starting his sequence of changes of flight, pace, turn. Paine watches and plays everything to leg, getting off the mark with two runs through square.
69th over: Australia 208-5 (Green 23, Paine 0) Siraj to Green, and the speed-up has slowed down again. Blocks out a maiden, playing at every ball.
68th over: Australia 208-5 (Green 23, Paine 0) Australia’s captain to the crease, so he’s in prime position to dictate how Australia approach this match tactically from here. His lead is 302. He blocks Ashwin’s last two balls.
WICKET! Smith lbw Ashwin 81, Australia 208-5
Raucous appeal from Ashwin bowling to Smith, flighted outside off, turning past the inside edge and hitting the pad in front of off stump! Umpire Reiffel thought there was a nick, I’d fancy, it looked like there might be. He says not out. But Rahane goes upstairs and DRS shows no nick, hitting just in line, and collecting leg stump flush. Ashwin is a man in the desert falling on his knees at an oasis.
67th over: Australia 206-4 (Smith 80, Green 22) Suddenly the game has become easy for Smith. The bowlers haven’t showed up after lunch. Another help-yourself way down leg from Siraj and it’s glanced for four. A few singles as well, the score passes 200 and the lead passes 300 in that over.
66th over: Australia 199-4 (Smith 74, Green 21) Ashwin from the other end, and he’s bowled poorly today at times. Another over with too many balls outside leg stump, and Smith sweeps one hard for four, then plays the standing paddle for a single. Smith has obviously had a strategy talk at lunch and decided to get things moving. He’s on for twin tons here...
65th over: Australia 194-4 (Smith 69, Green 21) Siraj resumes after lunch. Green pushes a single to cover, bringing Smith on strike. And Smith’s first ball after the break he hooks for six! Whoosh. Has a big swing at a ball down the leg side, top edge, clears the fine leg rope. Next ball, glanced for four. Leg side again, no good. Big over to start, a dozen from it.
Lunch – Australia 181 for 4, leading by 276 in the third innings
They’re in a commanding position, the Aussies. They can throw the bat after lunch or just grind on to a lead over 300. Either way, they’ll probably be declaring around tea time or a bit afterwards. India are missing two players with injury remember, with both Pant and Jadeja not fielding at the moment and an unknown quantity with the bat once the fourth innings comes.
Smith has been pretty cautious and gradual today, adding 29 runs to his score in the session. Green has looked very good thus far. We’ll carry on in half an hour.
64th over: Australia 181-4 (Smith 58, Green 20) Ashwin with the last over before lunch. Smith chops a run away to point. Green circles like a caged animal after each delivery, thinking and breathing and preparing. Short leg, leg slip, slip, short midwicket, but he shovels the last ball behind square for one more run. He’ll have the strike after lunch, and the lead is 276.
63rd over: Australia 180-4 (Smith 57, Green 19) Driven down the ground by Green for four. Siraj doesn’t overpitch by much, but Green sends a garbage truck back through the ball. A lot of power and a broad blade. Siraj hits back two balls later, so nearly having Green lbw again but for a tiny inside edge! Rahane doesn’t review because he’s confident he heard the nick, and he was right. So was Umpire Blocker Wilson.
62nd over: Australia 176-4 (Smith 57, Green 15) Ashwin losing his line outside leg stump again, Smith scrabbling a single behind square. Green flicks another. No rush. Six minutes till stumps.
61st over: Australia 174-4 (Smith 56, Green 14) Mohammed Siraj has a delay while he gets the ground staff to attend to the bowler’s footmarks. He bowls a maiden to Green, who’s content to play it out. I’m seeing some agitation online that Australia should be scoring faster to have more time to bowl, but the rule of thumb tends to be that if you have four bowlers, you’re not going to be effective bowling more than four sessions to win a Test. So, if you can’t do it in that time, you’re not going to get it done. So I reckon they’ll bat until tea unless they’re bowled out.
Ruth Purdue writes in about the article we linked earlier about racist abuse from the stands.
“Life bans please for those responsible for this behaviour. Surely with a reduced crowd it’s not hard to work out who it is. Cricket Australia should not be kind or sugar coat this in any regard with PR speak. If the team has changed in attitude (play hard but fair) then they too must show it.”
60th over: Australia 174-4 (Smith 56, Green 14) Ashwin flicks out the carrom like he’s rudely disposing of a cigarette, but he’s astray with his line and it goes down the leg side. Smith sweeps it away for one run. Green forces a run through point. Smith whips two runs through square leg – there’s a third umpire replay to see if Green got home with Ashwin whipping the bowler’s bails off, as Ashwin loves to do at any time, but Green is home despite not sliding the bat. Leg side again, and Smith plays the stand-up paddle sweep a la Sachin Tendulkar but can’t beat the fielder behind square.
59th over: Australia 170-4 (Smith 53, Green 13) Siraj bowling to Green, who is batting out of his crease this innings after being done lbw in his last couple of hits. Shifting forward, shuffling back, he’s using his feet a lot even to the fast bowler. Stands still to the fifth ball and clips two runs off his pads.
The Australian lead is 264, if you’re wondering, which in my humble is already well past what India can make batting fourth. After Headingley though I doubt you’ll see Tim Paine set any team less than 400 if he has the choice.
58th over: Australia 168-4 (Smith 53, Green 11) Ashwin to Smith, six shots in the over and every one goes leg side, Smith working with the spin to defend or to score. No run until the final ball, which Smith gets fine for two, but until that point he kept playing into the leg-side net.
57th over: Australia 166-4 (Smith 51, Green 11) Mohammed Siraj back into action, the top-knot flying in the breeze. To Green he’s bowling straight and sometimes short. Green misses a pull shot to a ball that wasn’t short enough. Half an hour until lunch, now. Green just wants to bat through.
56th over: Australia 166-4 (Smith 51, Green 11) Ashwin to bowl now, ending a three-over spell from Bumrah that does nothing to dispel the idea that he’s sore. Ashwin bowls a few balls over the wicket, then comes around the wicket. Catchers on the leg side to Green, trying to get him to pop something up. Green uses his feet to defend, and finds a run to square leg from the sixth ball.
55th over: Australia 165-4 (Smith 51, Green 10) Smith takes a moment to compose himself, facing out a maiden over from Saini.
Fifty! Smith 50 from 134 balls
54th over: Australia 165-4 (Smith 51, Green 10) Bumrah bowls short and Smith pulls a run past that leg gully down to the man in the deep. There’s his milestone, to follow his century in the first innings. That makes it the ninth time that he’s made a hundred and a fifty in the same match. They add a couple more singles to follow.
53rd over: Australia 162-4 (Smith 49, Green 9) Saini to continue and he nearly has Smith caught at leg gully. Again! So many times for Smith. Same shot, flicks it away, airborne, and it dips on Gill late and bounces in front, but he wasn’t very fast to try moving forward. Might have got under it if he’d been anticipating it, but perhaps that’s unrealistic given the time he had. Smith plays the same shot next ball for a single. Green faces out a few, then the last ball of the over he strides forward and drives through extra cover for four. That had authority.
52nd over: Australia 157-4 (Smith 48, Green 5) Bumrah to Green, beating him with a really testing delivery outside the off stump. Bowls fuller and straighter the next couple, Green getting his huge forward stride in to defend. Then drives at the fifth ball and edges it for four! Could have had a second slip for the new batsman against your premier bowler. Pujara is standing at about second slip, but he’s the only one in the cordon. That ball goes through third slip.
51st over: Australia 153-4 (Smith 48, Green 1) Another top over from Saini, cranking his pace up, hitting an uncomfortable length. Green manages to jab a single behind square to get off the mark and off strike. Smith gets an unpleasant ball that splices him, making him yank the bottom hand off the bat.
Now, here’s an extremely disheartening story. Really grim. I’m not sure why it’s being reported as “alleged” given that no one has been named.
50th over: Australia 152-4 (Smith 48, Green 0) Smith starts to accelerate as the wickets fall, as he did at times in England in 2019. Bumrah comes back to try to prise this opening wider, but he overcooks one ball outside off stump and Smith destroys it through cover. In picturesque fashion, but destroys it nonetheless. The follow-up balls from Bumrah are more challenging, on the stumps and using that variable bounce, one a bit low and one a bit high. So it does look like Smith’s approach might be to attack anything wide, defend anything straight, given that erratic bounce.
Updated
WICKET! Wade c Saha b Saini 4, Australia 148-4
49th over: Australia 148-4 (Smith 44) Drinks break, then Saini continues to Smith. Tapping, walking, watching, blocking. Tapping, walking, dispatched through cover point for four! Hurled his hands at that one outside his off stump, took it off a length with a square slash. That’s fierce. But from the fifth ball, Smith works a single, and from the sixth...
a perfect delivery from Saini! Around the wicket, very wide, angled in, seaming away, and Wade trying to defend can’t deal with the length. That was absolutely perfect to make him play but let it deck away. What a ball, caught behind!
Saha might be on for the record for catches by a substitute.
Updated
48th over: Australia 143-3 (Smith 39, Wade 4) Smith takes a single first ball, and Ashwin immediately comes around the wicket to the left-handed Wade, giving the ball lots of loop outside his off stump. Pitching on a nice length, turning the ball away from the bat by a distance. This will be the challenge for Wade: which ball turns, which ball comes on straight to hit his pad.
47th over: Australia 142-3 (Smith 38, Wade 4) So one of the Twitch Twins is gone, and Matthew Wade comes to the middle. He gets off the mark beautifully, smoked through cover for four! That’s so good. He looked a million bucks in the first innings, playing through the off side and middling his sweep shots that kept hitting short leg, then he got out to one of the most daft shots of his life. So if he can avoid the latter, he can do damage with the former.
WICKET! Labuschagne c Saha b Saini 73
What a catch from Saha! Saini bowls at the hip of Labuschagne, who tries to glance it to fine leg. But the erratic bounce gets bigger on that occasion, and flicks the glove instead. It’s flying for runs but Saha comes in flying as well. Fully extended, diving to his left, launching off both feet and getting both gloves to the ball having turned sideways. He snares it miles down the leg side.
And he won’t be credited with that catch to his Test record, because he’s a fielding substitute.
46th over: Australia 138-2 (Labuschagne 73, Smith 38) Reverse-sweep from Labuschagne. That’s tactical, with nobody out there behind point for the spinner, and it picks him up a comfortable boundary against Ashwin. He tries another reverse but mistimes it for a single, then Smith flicks a couple of runs square.
45th over: Australia 131-2 (Labuschagne 68, Smith 36) Saini bowling to Labuschagne who drives on the up, nicely through covers, looks like four except that Mayank Agarwal who is substitute fielding out there chases it and puts in an Indian Jones roll to stay parallel to the rope, flicking it back just in time. Three runs.
44th over: Australia 128-2 (Labuschagne 65, Smith 36) Against Ashwin, Labuschagne is happy to play the sweep shot and gets off strike. Smith is playing upright instead, stepping back onto his stumps and turning the ball to square leg. Basically playing it off the pitch. Looks comfortable enough despite the short leg fielder standing by.
43rd over: Australia 127-2 (Labuschagne 64, Smith 36) Hmm, it appears that Bumrah is off the field. Getting some running repairs. That dropped catch from his second ball starts to look all the more important, if that was him pushing through some injury to create that chance. Saini comes on to bowl this over, and one keeps low. It beats the inside edge as Smith tries to force square. Tricks in the wicket if you hit just the right spot.
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42nd over: Australia 126-2 (Labuschagne 63, Smith 36) A maiden from Ashwin, though it’s not like Smith isn’t trying to score. Down the track, going back, turning to leg, but can’t beat the field.
41st over: Australia 126-2 (Labuschagne 63, Smith 36) Siraj pitches up a few to Smith before going short, and Smith plays an ungainly pull shot, falling over to the off side as he shovels it down to fine leg for a run.
40th over: Australia 125-2 (Labuschagne 63, Smith 35) Down the track comes Labuschagne and drives Ashwin for four. They’ve been very specific about going after Ashwin in this Test, and this wasn’t a convincing shot: he hit it flatter than intended, so that a straighter mid-off might have caught it. But that doesn’t happen.
39th over: Australia 119-2 (Labuschagne 58, Smith 34) A couple of singles from Siraj, Australia’s lead is up to 213.
“Typing sleepily from Naples,” says Colum Fordham. “I thought Bumrah’s smile after Vihari dropped a straightforward catch from Labuschagne was the height of magnaminity. Had that been taken, it might have given the Indian team a vital lift. Both India’s quicks are bowling magnificently but, as the Aussie commentators are reiterating on my ever so slightly dodgy streaming site, catches win matches.Dropped catches invariably lead to lost matches. Not rocket science but true. Hope Ashwin can weave his magic but things looking ominous for India now.”
I don’t want to talk this game down, but I think it’s pretty well done already. This pitch is getting harder to score on, India will be eight out, all out, given their injuries, and Australia could lose eight for none right now and still be the favourites to win with more than 200 runs for India to get.
From here, the game is really whether India’s bowlers can slow the scoring so much that Australia can’t declare before tea, to reduce the time to bat for a draw. Even that’s a real long shot.
38th over: Australia 117-2 (Labuschagne 57, Smith 33) Here’s Ashwin now, the off-spinner. Bowling just outside off stump, aiming at the pads of the right-handers. Smith tucks away a single first ball, but Marnus looks vulnerable as he goes down to sweep, misses, gets hit on the pad, and survives an appeal because he’s hit outside the line of off stump. This is why that part of the Laws should go, in my opinion: the ball-tracker shows that it’s smashing off stump straight on, but the impact is outside off stump so it can’t be given out. There’s no good argument for that. Rahane was confident about the impact point, so he doesn’t send that decision up to the third umpire. Last ball of the over, a true outside edge from Labuschagne that gets him two runs.
37th over: Australia 114-2 (Labuschagne 55, Smith 32) There is some strike for Smith now, who pushes a single out to cover and runs sharply with the shot. There’s the difference between the teams: sharp decisive running, and a throw putting no pressure on the non-striker’s stumps. As opposed to what we saw yesterday, three run-outs thanks to poor judgement on one part and superb fielding technique on the other. India have not long lost a bowler in Jadeja but their best fielder by an absolute mile. No need for fielders as Siraj overpitches though, and Labuschagne drives straight for four. Lovely shot, big stride forward.
36th over: Australia 109-2 (Labuschagne 51, Smith 31) Bumrah keeps working away at the off stump of Labuschagne. A slip and a gully waiting. All defence. Another maiden. Ashwin is going to have to do a lot of work today, with Jadeja out.
35th over: Australia 109-2 (Labuschagne 51, Smith 31) Siraj follows up Bumrah with a beauty of his own, also searing past the outside edge of Labuschagne, poking the bat around off stump. After four balls he’s able to divert a single through the leg side. Smith has been facing little and scoring even less.
Fifty! Labuschagne 50 from 82 balls
34th over: Australia 108-2 (Labuschagne 50, Smith 31) It hasn’t been smooth as yet, but Marnus has gathered the two runs he needed to take his overnight score to 50. A little drive past the bowler to mid-on, saved by the fielder tumbling across. That came after the batsman had been beaten conclusively by Bumrah decking the ball away from his edge on a good length. Just didn’t get the nick.
33rd over: Australia 107-2 (Labuschagne 49, Smith 31) Siraj starting well, shifting a ball into Labuschagne that bangs him on the pad, too high, and otherwise pinning him down until the final ball of the over is inside-edged away for a scruffy single. Tall and quick is Siraj, another of these bowlers with a very whippy bowling arm.
32nd over: Australia 106-2 (Labuschagne 48, Smith 31) Bumrah continues, and maybe the next over is even more deflating than the one where the catch goes down, because Smith has to play at every ball but defends them all away with control. Any bowler in this position could be forgiven for now thinking just how long the day ahead of them might be. Can the Indians create more chances?
31st over: Australia 106-2 (Labuschagne 48, Smith 31) Mohammed Siraj with the ball from the other end, an over with just a Smith single to the leg side. Reports coming in are that Jadeja’s thumb was dislocated, not broken. When he was hit he kind of had the thumb bent back rather than smashed, so that’s a different kind of painful.
30th over: Australia 105-2 (Labuschagne 48, Smith 30) The day begins, with Bumrah gearing up to bowl again. He’s done a power of work, this wonderful bowler, and he’s tired. Only his 17th Test match but he’s carried so much work for this team on tours away from home. Still never played in India. His first ball is blocked away, his second... Labuschagne is dropped! Oh, goodness. That was a simple chance, it was the trap that India have had baited and set all tour, and Labuschagne is spared. The leg gully that has been in position especially for this pair of batsmen. Labuschagne turns the ball off his legs, gets done by some extra bounce and hits it in the air. It dips as it approaches Vihari, who only has to take one sidestep to his left and get low to receive it. But he’s not in the right spot, doesn’t watch the ball all the way in, and it hits his wrist rather than his hand and spills away. Bumrah cannot believe it. He doesn’t rage, but he just smiles and smiles and smiles to himself for the rest of the over, shaking his head each time as he walks back to his mark.
If you’d like the detailed summary of the day, there’s always me with Adam Collins doing our own wrap-ups on video each evening after play. With bonus picturesque Melbourne background and creative camera work.
Here is the wires summary from the third day, if that’s of use to you.
Get in touch
The usual style. Pop an envelope in the internet with my address on it. That’s in the sidebar, and when I’m replaced by someone else then it will change to someone else’s address. That’s how we roll. Emma Kemp is taking the second half of the day.
Preamble
Hello again, it’s day four from Sydney, and from a Test series that looks very much changed by yesterday. It was a bruising day from Australia’s fast bowlers. They roughed up India on a pitch that was a bit hard to score and had some inconsistent bounce, but wasn’t hugely difficult to bat on, in theory. On a day when India were in a position to score more and match Australia’s 338, they were bowled out for 244, and it was hostility that did it as well as alertness in the field. Three run-outs and two Indian batsmen injured by the short ball, it was like a return to the way Australian teams of the past used to make tours to Australia impossible for shellshocked tourists from the subcontinent.
We resume today with Australia 197 runs ahead, at 103 for 2 in the second innings, with Smith and Labuschagne to resume. Could be a hard day for India from here. Having Rishabh Pant off the field isn’t the biggest loss, as the substitute keeper Wriddiman Saha is generally better with the gloves, but fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah looks a bit sore too, and Ravindra Jadeja was the other casualty of the short ball yesterday and can’t bowl with a fractured left thumb. Can the others rally?
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