Last Updated: February 09, 2023, 13:48 IST
KS Bharat celebrates after stumping Marnus Labuschagne out (AP Photo)
Bharat collected the ball in a flash and whipped the bails off. Since Labuschagne was dragged out of the crease, he couldn’t make it in time
Kona Srikar Bharat was a bit emotional on Thursday morning when he huddled along with his team members at Nagpur’s VCA Stadium. India were about to take the field against Australia in the Border-Gavaskar series opener and before the toss, the Andhra wicketkeeper-batter received his debut cap from Cheteshwar Pujara. Moreover, it was a proud moment for the 29-year-old as he bagged the opportunity of representing the country with his family member around.
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Considered one of the most agile stumpers around at the moment, Bharat marked his presence with lightning-fast glovework behind the stumps to get rid of Marnus Labuschagne. It was a much-needed breakthrough for India, provided by Ravindra Jadeja after lunch. The in-form Aussie batter was on 49 when Jadeja bowled a flighted delivery on the off-stump line. Labuschagne leaned forward looking for the drive but got beaten by the big turn.
Bharat collected the ball in a flash and whipped the bails off. Since Labuschagne was dragged out of the crease, he couldn’t make it in time.
Meanwhile, Jadeja followed with another wicket, making it two in two to finish the over. It was a fuller delivery from the all-rounder and Matt Renshaw looked to flick it away but was beaten by the turn and struck on the pad. On-field umpire Nitin Menon gave it out straightaway but Renshaw decided to review it, only to find out that the ball was clipping the leg stump to stay with umpire’s call.
Earlier, Smith and Labuschagne handled the Indian spinners with a lot of confidence as Australia recovered from early jitters to reach 76 for two at lunch. Mohammad Shami and Mohammed Siraj removed Usman Khawaja and David Warner in quick succession.
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Labuschagne and Smith led the Australian fight back in an engaging first session where they didn’t let India’s spin troika get the better of them.
Labuschagne, who hit eight shots to the fence in his 110-ball innings, played the role of an enforcer whereas his senior Smith defended doggedly during his 74-ball stay, nullifying the Indian spinners to a great extent in their 74-run stand for the third wicket.
(With Agency Inputs)
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