Bengaluru: It was one of the most intense days of Test match cricket where India rose from their slumber just at the right time. While Australia showed great amount of resilience, it was the Indian bowlers who fired salvos and came up with a spirited show to slow down Australia’s progress. At stumps on Day two, Australia were 237-6 with a vital lead of 48 runs. Going into Day three, India will aim to polish off the tail, but the lead could have been much bigger, had not the Indian bowlers put in the hard yards on a hot Sunday at the M Chinnaswamy. It all started when skipper Virat Kohli triggered a light banter when Australia skipper Steve Smith walked in. The trick worked as a fired up Ishant Sharma traded barbs with Smith and the crowd were right behind India. The emotions on field were clearly visible and former Australian skipper Michael Clarke said that Kohli was keen to unsettle the Aussies skipper. “Steve Smith has made a lot of runs in the last 12 months, two years; I can’t recall anybody getting under his skin or saying a word to him,” former captain Michael Clarke said on Star Sports. “Virat [has decided] we’re not letting Steve Smith play his game, living in his bubble and making more runs, I’m going to stir him up and get something out of the Australian captain.””There’s constant chat there, Virat Kohli and Steve Smith. There’s plenty of banter going on there,” said former India captain Ravi Shastri in commentary. “I’ll tell you what we’re watching, we’re watching too sides under immense pressure and all these smiles there’s a fakeness to it,” Test great Matthew Hayden told on Star Sports. “There’s a degree of uncertainty. It’s pressure cooker out there. The scoreboard barely moving 26 overs in and it’s game on.”While the banter was on, R Ashwin with his fizzing off-breaks tested Smith with Ishant and Umesh Yadav bowling fierce spells. Finally, Smith gave up and it was Ravindra Jadeja who spun out the Australian skipper to keep India in the match. Such was a spirited attack by India that none of the bowlers showed any dissent when given the ball and they all bowled their hearts out sans any luck. Lady luck eluded both the Indian pacers and spinners and when it came to the reviews, it was done and dusted quickly with India gaining nothing. In the 29 overs bowled between the start and lunch, Australia scored just 47 runs and lost their two most important wickets – Warner and Smith. That shows the line of attack from the Indians and the determination of not letting Australia walk over. Noted cricket expert Harsha Bhogle summed up India’s performance on Day two.”After a forgettable first day, India have shown tremendous fight today. Love to have been a fly on the wall at the team discussion,” Bhogle tweeted. “Battle of attrition this; of inches, not miles. Patience will be an invaluable asset to possess especially for India’s bowlers.” R Ashwin bowled 41 overs and took one wicket, Ishant Sharma bowled 23 overs and took one wicket, Umesh Yadav bowled 24 overs and took one wicket. But Ravindra Jadeja bowled just 17 overs and took three wickets. Australia have taken the lead and if the Test match slips out of India’s hands, Virat Kohli will be left to rue the fact that he could have given Jadeja some more overs.
July 26, 2024
