In Adelaide, Australian bowler Mitchell Starc shone brightly during his first five-wicket haul, helping to dismiss India for 180 runs on the first day of the day-night Test. At tea, India was struggling at 82 for 4, and they lost the last six wickets for just 98 runs before the dinner break.
Starc, along with fellow bowlers Pat Cummins and Scott Boland, made great use of the pink ball, especially in the second session. Starc used his famous inswingers to dismiss R Ashwin and Harshit Rana, while Cummins cleverly used short balls. Rohit Sharma, batting in the middle order for the first time in six years, was trapped lbw by Boland. Rishabh Pant tried to play aggressively but fell victim to a sharp bouncer from Cummins.
Nitish Reddy, who impressed on his debut in Perth, played a fearless innings. He added crucial runs alongside Ashwin, who replaced Washington Sundar in the lineup. While wickets kept falling, Reddy took bold shots, hitting two fantastic sixes off Starc and Boland, which helped the team score more than 150 runs.
Earlier in the match, Starc struck at important moments, taking out opener K L Rahul and star player Virat Kohli in quick succession, which turned the match in Australia’s favor. This happened after a solid 69-run partnership between Rahul and Shubman Gill. Things got worse when Boland dismissed Gill quickly, leading to India losing their last three wickets for just 12 runs.
Rohit, who had a comfortable place in the dressing room moments before, had to go in to bat at a new spot in the order to allow Rahul to take the opening position. It was a dramatic start, especially since India chose to bat first on a pitch with good grass cover. Young player Yashasvi Jaiswal, who had a great first Test in Australia a few weeks ago, got out on the very first ball, missing a fuller delivery from Starc that swung back just enough to be ruled out LBW.
Gill, back in action after healing from a thumb injury, played confidently, while Rahul took 21 balls to score his first run. Four out of Gill’s five boundaries came off Starc, who sometimes bowled too full or short. Gill’s best shots were his off-drive and cover drive against Starc.
Rahul almost got out without scoring, but Boland overstepped on the first ball he bowled. Known for targeting the off-stump, Boland made Rahul edge a ball that almost took him out. Once Rahul scored, he started playing aggressively, with a beautiful cover drive being the highlight.
Things looked good for India until Starc removed Rahul and then Kohli in quick succession with short balls that surprised them. Gill was bowled out last in the session as he tried to hit Boland but was trapped lbw
Leave a Reply