Related Links: Australia Tour of India 2012/13 | India Vs Australia – 1st Test Scorecard
The Opening Test match between India and Australia continues to be evenly contested as the second day’s play was also full of action just like yesterday. There was plenty of joy for the Indian spectators as batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar delighted them with his superb unbeaten knock of 71. India closed the second day’s play at 182 for 3 after bowling out Australia for 380 around lunch time.
The morning session was a tough one for India as they had to wait for about 90 minutes to get their first success. Skipper Michael Clarke was the first to depart, miscuing a lofted shot off Ravindra Jadeja to long off. Clarke scored 130 from 246 balls with 12 fours and a six. With Siddle, Clarke managed to add up 54 runs for the 8th wicket. Playing his 100th Test, Harbhajan Singh looked like a very ordinary bowler but all of a sudden he took a big risk and bowled a doosra which beat the bat of Siddle. Soon, Harbhajan bowled a quicker straighter one which forced Peter Siddle (19 from 94 balls) to edge it into the hands of Sehwag at slip.
The last man to be dismissed was Nathan Lyon whose sweep shot off R Ashwin came off the glove and was caught one handed by a diving Kohli at leg slip. R Ashwin claimed career best figures of 7 for 103 in 42 overs. Australia finished with a sizable total of 380 in 133 overs. There was early pressure on India as James Pattinson knocked out the Indian openers inside six overs!
Murali Vijay was the first casualty, not picking the yorker length and shaping up to play a cover drive but Pattinson’s delivery was clocking at 150 kmph and the speeding train crashed onto his leg stump with an inside edge. Sehwag (who was wearing spectacles for the first time in his international career) was dismissed in a bizarre fashion when a backfoot defence to a rising delivery rolled down onto the pitch and lobbed up to take off the leg stump bail.
India’s ship was steadied by a 93-run stand between Pujara and Tendulkar. After Tea, the pair was dislodged by none other than Pattinson as Cheteshwar Pujara (44 from 74 balls with 6 fours) lost his concentration and was bowled by a short of length delivery that jagged back to take an inside edge and take the middle stump. Pujara was playing well away from his body and the ball stayed much lower than he had anticipated. Australia could not make further inroads after this as Virat Kohli was determined to play a good knock along with the Maestro at the other end.
Tendulkar finished the day’s play with a fluent 71* from 128 balls with 6 fours. Kohli entertained the spectators with his stylish strokeplay in an unbeaten 50 from 84 balls with 7 fours. With Tendulkar, Kohli had added 77 runs for the unbroken 4th wicket stand. India ended the day’s play with a deficit of 198 runs with 7 wickets in hand.