India vs Australia Cricket Blog: India End Day 2 at 120/1
India vs Australia 2017, 3rd Test, Day 2 updates.
advertisement
- India end day two of the Ranchi Test at 120/1.
- KL Rahul top scored for India with 67 runs.
- Australia were bowled out for 451 runs in their first innings.
- Ravindra Jadeja picked up five wickets for 124 runs.
India End Day 2 at 120/1
Murali Vijay and Cheteshwar Pujara took India to 120/1 at the end of day two of the third Test between India and Australia at Ranchi on Friday.
After Australia put up a mammoth first innings total of 451 runs, the Indian openers gave a good reply with 91-run partnership.
KL Rahul played a brilliant innings of 67 runs and Murali Vijay remained not out on 42 off 122 ball at the close of play.
India trail Australia by 331 runs.
Pat Cummins’ Comeback Wicket
Pat Cummins has got the breakthrough for Australia! Rahul can’t find a way to get away from the bouncer by the Australian bowler and gloves the delivery to Matthew Wade behind the stumps.
The Karnataka batsman misses out on a century once again and walks back to the pavilion for a well made 67.
Cummins, who is playing his first Test after six years, will be certainly looking to make more inroads on the flat deck at Ranchi.
India: 91/1 after 31.2 overs.
Rahul’s 4th Fifty
KL Rahul scores his fourth fifty in this series against Australia. The Karnataka batsman has batted positively yet again and hopefully he will be able to reach the three-figure mark in this innings.
Murali Vijay and KL Rahul have not taken any risks and quietly taken India to 73/0 in 22 overs.
Rahul and Vijay Take India Past 50
KL Rahul and Murali Vijay have finally managed to post India’s first fifty-plus opening partnership.
Rahul, who has been India’s best batsman in this series has started off confidently once again. Murali Vijay, who is making a comeback from a shoulder injury, is taking his time at the other end.
India: 51/0 after 18 overs.
Tea at 20/0
Murali Vijay and KL Rahul have faced all of 8 overs and the teams are breaking for tea. 20 runs have been posted on the board so far.
Cautious Start by Vijay and Rahul
Murali Vijay and KL Rahul are leaving everything bowled outside the off-stump and have shown a strong defense for the deliveries coming into them.
They have not sent any delivery to the fence yet and are taking their time to assess the wicket.
India: 4/0 after 4 overs.
Australia All Out For 451
And a long Australian innings comes to an end! India couldn’t get Steve Smith’s wicket but they managed to get the other players out and Australia have posted a mammoth 451 runs in the first innings.
Jadeja, who picked up five wickets for 124 runs, back flicked a throw and got Josh Hazlewood run out for zero runs. Smith was stranded at the other end at 178 runs.
Can the Indian batting line-up resurrect itself on a flat wicket? Is Virat Kohli fit enough to play a match changing innings?
With all these questions floating around, Australia definitely have their noses in front at the moment.
Five Wickets For Jadeja
Ravindra Jadeja picks up his fifth wicket in the innings as Nathan Lyon loops a catch to Karun Nair at silly point and gets out for one run.
Steve Smith is showing no signs of wanting to leave the crease at the other end!
Austra;ia: 449/9 after 136 overs.
O'Keefe Falls to Umesh Yadav
Finally! India have something to cheer about. Steve O'Keefe, who batted brilliantly for his 25 runs, pulls the ball straight to Murali Vijay at fine-leg off Umesh Yadav’s bowling.
Steve Smith is still going strong at 174 at the other end.
Australia: 446/8 after 135 overs.
Australia Take Lunch at 401/7
Australia have already got the total they were looking for at the start of the day’s play. Every run from here will be a bonus for the Baggy Greens.
Smith and Maxwell added 32 runs before the latter batsman was out caught behind to Jadeja in the 102nd over.
Thereafter, the off-spinner kept India in the game with a double strike in the 116th over. Matthew Wade and Pat Cummins were out for 37 and 0 respectively.
But Australia managed to score 102 runs in the session.
Smith (153*) and O'Keefe (1*) have taken Australia to 401/7 at lunch.
Steve Smith Scores 150!
Steve Smith brings up 150 runs in 315 balls. The Indian bowlers have tried everything to get him out but the Australian captain has been determined to keep going and going.
He has helped Australia reach close to 400, another 50 more runs and India will iunder tremendous pressure.
Australia: 398/7 after 117 overs.
Jadeja Strikes Twice in Three Deliveries
Ravindra Jadeja moves into the Australian tail with two wickets in three balls. First, Wade edges one to Saha and departs for a well made 37 and then a delivery later, the off-spinner knocks off Pat Cummins’ stumps.
He goes for a duck.
Australia: 395/7 after 116 overs.
Smith-Wade Forge Ahead
Glenn Maxwell scored his century and is now back in the hut. New man in Matthew Wade is ensuring his skipper doesn't miss the previous partner.
The two have already added 50 runs in just 64 deliveries.
Australia: 381/5 after 112 overs
Fire Scare for MS Dhoni’s Jharkhand
Away from Ranchi and Jharkhand’s cricket team, including their skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, escaped unhurt after a fire broke out at the five star hotel in Dwarka they were residing in.
The Vijay Hazare match between Jharkhand and Bengal, slated for today, has since been rescheduled to Feroz Shah Kotla on Saturday after match referee Sanjay Verma announced the postponement.
Dhoni along with his teammates was having breakfast at the team hotel, ITC Welcome, when they were evacuated on a SOS basis. Around 540 guests were staying at the hotel, according to police sources.
Full report here: MS Dhoni, Jharkhand Team Evacuated After Fire At Delhi Hotel
Jadeja Strikes for India
Ravindra Jadeja and Wriddhiman Saha have collaborated to send the centurion packing.
A little outside edge off his bat and Saha’s gloves are waiting. Glenn Maxwell goes for 104.
Matthew Wade is the new man in.
Australia: 332/5
Ton Up for Maxwell!
Playing his first Test match in two and a half years, Glenn Maxwell has smashed his first Test century!
A boundary to get to the landmark. The hundred comes up in 180 deliveries.
Fun fact: In the three matches Maxwell played in whites before Ranchi, he had managed a highest-score of 37.
Rahane Leading India
Virat Kohli is not on the field and yet again, it is Ajinkya Rahane who is leading the Indian team in the middle.
The Aussies though have their skipper right in the thick of things. Glenn Maxwell batting in his 90s.
Maxwell Breaks Bat
First ball of the innings and Australia already have their first casualty. Not a wicket, this one though.
Glen Maxwell loses the bottom part of his bat to Umesh Yadav’s blistering pace. Smiles all round, to start the day.
Skipper Kohli Spotted!
No clarification on whether the Indian skipper will take the field on Day 2 in Ranchi, after he injured his shoulder while fielding. However, he has been spotted on the field at the JSCA before the start of play.
In a late evening press release, the BCCI said there were “no serious concerns”.
Australia Start on 299
Australia start their second day innings against India in Ranchi at 299/4. Skipper Steven Smith (117) and Glenn Maxwell (82), who returned to the Test side after two and a half years, were at the crease for the visitors at stumps
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)