Adelaide: India put up a strong defense in the first Test against Australia. After 61 overs on the first day, India were 126 for three. Captain Virat Kohli (50) and Ajinkya Rahane (10) were at the crease. The duo added 26 runs for the fourth wicket. Kohli hit five fours off 123 balls.
Cheteshwar Pujara’s dismissal in the last overs of the second session was a setback for India. Pujara was unbeaten on 43 off 160 balls with two fours. Openers Prithviraj Shah (0) and Mayank Agarwal (17) were the other outsiders. Australia’s wickets were shared by Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc and Nathan Lyon. After losing two wickets for 32 runs, Pujara and Kohli put on 68 runs for the third wicket.
India captain Virat Kohli won the toss and elected to bat. India started the match confident that they had not lost any of the matches in which Kohli won the toss in the Test. Prithviraj Shah, who gave the opportunity to dismiss Shubhman Gill and Rishabh Pant, who had done well in the warm – up matches, started the Indian innings with a pathetic look that came off the second ball of the innings. Shah returned with a clean bowl off Mitchell Starc’s smashing delivery.
Mayank Agarwal, who tried to hold on with Cheteshwar Pujara for the second wicket, gave hope at one point. However, Pat Cummins’ smashing ball flew with a stump between Agarwal’s bat and pad and scored just 32 runs on the Indian scoreboard.
This was followed by the Virat Kohli-Cheteshwar Pujara partnership that gave India hope. India went on to win the first session without losing any more wickets. Both batted defensively in the second session. Eventually, with the arrival of spinner Nathan Lyon, Indian batting began to falter.
With the arrival of the spinner, Kohli and Pujara, on the other hand, increased the scoring rate but the chances of wickets falling became active. Pujara was released just before the end of the second session, confirming these possibilities. The batsman slipped the ball into the hands of Marnus Labushein in an attempt to defend the Lion’s pierced ball. The umpire did not allow the outing but Australia demanded the DRS. Pujara returned after it became clear in the replays that the ball had hit the bat. Pujara was unbeaten on 43 off 160 balls with two fours.
English Summary: Australia vs India, 1st Test – Live Cricket Score
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