Bowlers put India on Top on a gripping day of Test Cricket

So, what makes for a perfect Test pitch? Better than putting it into words, we would suggest watching the first Border Gavaskar series Test match of 2020. Every ball an event, a session, nay, a small phase of half an hour of cricket which could sway the game the other way. Just ask the Indians who had just lost their last 4 wickets for next to nothing, but the half an hour before lunch turned the game around with the Indian fast bowlers delivering a hostile spell.

The day could not have begun more disastrously for Team India who would have harbored hopes of putting up at least 300 on the board in the first innings. It took all of 25 balls for Australia to clean up India’s tail. 

The challenge of playing Australia in their own backyard is the atmosphere of the stadiums which resonate with the kind of aggression the Aussies display on-field. But, this day was different. The Aussie openers took 28 balls to get off the mark. And that set the template for the day. If the first 28 deliveries set the tone, the half an hour before lunch was an emphatic stomp. Both the Australian openers were back in the hut, and Australia had next to nothing to show for on the board.

Day 2 mirrored the first in more than one way. Just like on Day 1 where India had Cheteshwar Pujara and Virat Kohli holding fort going into lunch, Day 2 saw the Aussie counterpart of the duo - Marnus Labuschagne and Steve Smith batting together. Much like for Australia and Nathan Lyon who broke the partnership, it was R Ashwin who got the big fish - Steve Smith. Wickets kept tumbling, Ashwin being the wrecker in chief for India, knowing over No’s 5 and 6.

Marnus Labuschagne and Tim Paine’s resistance was ended by an Umesh Yadav inswinger which trapped the set Steve Smith on-field lookalike Labuschagne right in front. Three balls later, a snaking bouncer had Pat Cummins fending. Brief resistance from Mitchell Starc and Nathan Lyon alongside the battling Aussie skipper Tim Paine dragged the Aussie score to 191.

India may have lost Prithvi Shaw to a loose inside edge, but with a 62-run lead and 9 wickets in the bag, the game appears to have moved forward rapidly with a stealth mask. Day 3 promises more twists and turns. India need to capitalize on their lead, the Aussies need quick wickets. The game is far from over.