Edited By: Aditya Maheshwari
Last Updated: February 09, 2023, 17:02 IST
Rohit Sharma scored a sublime half-century on the Day 1 (AP Image)
India completely dominated Australia on the opening day of first Test match in Nagpur. Skipper Rohit Sharma scored an unbeaten half-century after Ravindra Jadeja claimed a fifer to dismantle the visitors for 177.
Skipper Rohit Sharma put India in the driver’s seat after Ravindra Jadeja spun his web around Australian batters on the Day 1 of first Test match at Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium, Nagpur. The hosts completely stamped their authority over Australia on the opening day to set the tone for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Rohit batted with a positive intent after India bundled out the visitors for 177 at the start of the third session. The Indian skipper scored a sublime half-century and showed everyone how to bat on the tricky Nagpur surface where Australian batters struggled miserably in the first innings.
India posted 77/1 at stumps on day 1 as Rohit (56*) and Ravichandran Ashwin (0*) were in the middle. The Indian openers frustrated the Aussies bowlers in the final session but KL Rahul (20) lost his wicket at the brink of stumps as debutant Todd Murphy claimed his maiden Test scalp.
India vs Australia 1st Test Day 1 Highlights
Rahul didn’t had any problem playing the second fiddle to his skipper for the majority of the part as he batted with a cautious approach but a defensive error in the penultimate over of the day cost his wicket.
Rohit and Ashwin played the last over of Nathan Lyon cautiously to end the day on high as India trail Australia by 100 runs and are in the driver’s seat despite losing Rahul’s wicket.
The Indian skipper batted with a positive approach as he scored boundaries at regular intervals to put the Aussie bowlers under the pressure. He has so far smashed 9 fours and a six in 69 balls and is batting at a healthy strike rate of 81.16.
Earlier, unlike the Australian pacers, the Indian fast bowlers ran riot with the new ball as Mohammed Siraj dismissed Usman Khawaja with his first delivery of the series, while Mohammed Shami bowled an absolute jaffa to castle David Warner. The Aussies were in massive trouble after Pat Cummins won the toss and elected to bat.
The onus was once again on Marnus Labuschagne and Steve Smith to revive the Indian innings and they managed to do so in the first session with an 82-run stand. However, Jadeja spun his magic in the second session to pin Australia down. The southpaw dismissed Labuschagne (49) and Mat Renshaw (0) on back-to-back deliveries to push the visitors on the backfoot.
WATCH: Virat Kohli Puts His Arm Around Steve Smith as Duo Shares Laugh During Day 1 of Nagpur Test
He also castled Smith with an absolute beauty to win a battle against him as he was dismissed for 37 and was in quite a disbelief while taking the long walk back towards the pavilion.
Australia lost their last four wickets for 15 runs as India cleaned up the tail in quick time. Jadeja completed his five-wicket haul when he claimed Todd Murphy (0) lbw. Only four Australian batters made it to double figures as the Indian bowlers dominated.
Veteran Ravichandran Ashwin also claimed three wickets to enter the 450-wicket club as Australia were bundled out right after Tea for 177.
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