India vs Australia 1st Test: Pujara fights on but Aussies still in command

Pujara helped India with much-needed after the top-order collapsed in front of Australia pacers

India vs Australia 1st Test: Cheteshwar Pujara’s gritty innings was the sole silver lining in yet another ordinary batting display which reduced India to 143 for six at tea on day one of the first Test against Australia here on Thursday.

At the break, Pujara was unbeaten on 46, having faced 141 deliveries, while R Ashwin was batting on 5 not out after the session lasting 29 overs. This was after a horrendous shot selection by Rohit Sharma (37) had left India in the lurch at 86 for five in the 38th over.|Sports|Post lunch, Rohit and Pujara started off well as they added 45 runs for the fifth wicket. While Pujara was sedate at one end, the former took the lead in scoring as he hit sixes at will. Two came off Pat Cummins (1-31); the first a pull shot that sailed for six and the other a proper cover drive that cleared the ropes comfortably.

It seemed that Rohit was intent on digging India out of this hole as he hit Nathan Lyon (2-51) for a six on the second ball of the 38th over. Marcus Harris almost caught it, with the ball barely crossing over the ropes and the umpire took some time to call it a six.That should have been a note of caution for the batsman, but he didn’t heed it and skied the very next ball for Harris to take an easy catch in the deep this time.

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India vs Australia 1st Test: Flop show by openers, Ind score 56/4 at lunch

The Australian pacers struck regularly with the new Kookaburra ball and made inroads into the Indian top-order that never got going in the session comprising 27 overs

Sports: India had a forgettable morning session on the opening day of the first Test with Australia reducing the visitors to 56 for four at lunch here on Thursday.

The Australian pacers struck regularly with the new Kookaburra ball and made inroads into the Indian top-order that never got going in the session comprising 27 overs. At the break, Cheteshwar Pujara was unbeaten on 11 not out, while Rohit Sharma was batting on 15 not out. This was after India won the toss and opted to bat on a warm day at the Adelaide Oval. Hanuma Vihari was left out as the visitors drafted in Rohit for the number six spot. For Australia, Marcus Harris made his Test debut as announced a day prior.

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Mitchell Starc (1-8) and Hazelwood (2-17) then began proceedings for Australia, and were on the money straightaway with their lengths. Of the two Indian openers, KL Rahul (2) looked out of sorts against their express pace, and was unsurprisingly dismissed cheaply. He went for an extravagant drive in only the second over and was caught at third slip off Hazlewood.

Murali Vijay (11) looked intent on getting a better start and he was watchful. On a couple occasions, he drove the ball to get the score moving but ultimately this led to his dismissal. In the seventh over, Vijay went for a cover drive against Starc and only ended up edging behind.

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