Mitchell Starc achieved his fourth five-wicket haul in day-night Tests and his 15th overall in his Test career as Australia dismissed India for 180 on the opening day in Adelaide. Australia maintained control with the bat, albeit in a cautious manner, as they reduced the deficit by 85 runs. Starc’s impressive performance with the pink ball was the highlight of the first day of the day-night Test in Adelaide, as Australia bounced back from their 295-run defeat in Perth by bowling out India for 180.
Team India collapses on a below average score of 180 runs in the first innings
On the opening delivery of the match, Starc dismissed Yashasvi Jaiswal, the centurion from the initial Test, by having him play defensively to a full ball, resulting in an LBW decision. This provided a much-needed boost to an Australia side under pressure, marking a promising start to their resurgence and likely instilling uncertainty in India’s strategy of batting first. KL Rahul received a second chance when he was initially ruled out caught behind off Scott Boland’s first delivery, only to be recalled due to the bowler’s no-ball. Additionally, Usman Khawaja failed to secure a catch at first slip during the same over.
India, benefiting from those reprieves and with a confident Shubman Gill at the crease, successfully reestablished their position in the match. Gill, participating in his inaugural Test of the series, exhibited minimal signs of inactivity as he capitalized on Starc’s aggressive bowling lengths, securing several impressive boundaries. After scoring his first run on the 24th delivery he faced, Rahul also started to find his rhythm.
The partnership established by the duo provided India with a sense of relative security, as they accumulated a 69-run stand. However, contrary to expectations, Australia reasserted their dominance during the final half hour of the first session. Each of Australia’s fast bowlers made their mark, with Cummins being particularly economical. Nevertheless, it was Starc, returning for his second spell, who inflicted significant damage once more. He dismissed Rahul, who was caught low at gully by Nathan McSweeney, and a cautious Virat Kohli, who edged a delivery to second slip.
The highlight of the session was Boland, who outperformed Gill. The batsman had adjusted his trigger movement to counter Boland’s probing deliveries outside off-stump, enabling him to better protect his off-stump and leave the ball effectively. However, this adjustment also made him vulnerable to the fuller deliveries, which Boland ultimately utilized towards the end of the session, resulting in Gill being dismissed leg before wicket. The loss of three wickets within a mere fifteen balls left India in a precarious position at the break, and their situation continued to deteriorate thereafter.
Skipper Rohit Sharma, who entered the match at No. 6, was dismissed by a sharply angled delivery from Boland, while Cummins successfully removed a promising Rishabh Pant with a well-directed short ball. Starc returned to the attack to secure his five-wicket haul, dismissing both R Ashwin and Harshit Rana with yorkers in the same over. Accompanied by the lower order, Nitish Reddy showcased several shots from the T20 repertoire, including a daring reverse-scoop six off Boland. He was ultimately the last player out, scoring a top innings total of 42, as he attempted to attack Starc, who concluded with outstanding figures of 6/48 while India concluded the first innings at the score of 180.
Australia make a headstart while losing Usman Khawaja's wicket
Australia began their innings under challenging conditions as the light began to fade, which is generally favorable for seam bowlers. While India was able to generate significantly more movement in the initial ten overs than Australia, this advantage did not translate into a substantial number of wickets. Usman Khawaja and Nathan McSweeney, displaying a cautious approach, successfully navigated the initial bowling spell, particularly countering the threat posed by Jasprit Bumrah.
Nevertheless, a strategic adjustment to round the wicket ultimately led to Khawaja’s dismissal, as he edged the ball to first slip. Earlier, Bumrah had a chance to dismiss McSweeney in a similar manner, but the opportunity was missed when Pant, diving, failed to secure a catch that seemed destined for first slip. Nevertheless, the opener was joined by a dogged Marnus Labuschagne, who took 18 balls to get off the mark. The duo stuck to their guns to see the day through, earning Australia the first day’s honours as Australia concluded the first day at the score of 86/1.
India’s Assistant Coach, Ryan ten Doeschate, is optimistic that the visitors can re-enter the contest in Adelaide on the second day by implementing a few adjustments. The first day of the Day-Night Test match was disappointing for India, as Australia concluded the day trailing by just 94 runs with nine wickets remaining, following India’s dismissal for 180 runs.
India, in particular, would have been disappointed with the lack of wickets in the final session under the lights, a period when bowling sides are renowned to make inroads. However, Ten Doeschate feels that things can change on the second day. “I know that the scores look like there is a big gap between the two teams but we still feel we are in the game and with a few tweaks tomorrow, we can get back in the game,” he said.
The former Dutch international also reserved praise for young allrounder Nitish Reddy and revealed that his solid contribution with the bat in the opening Test gave India the confidence to move him to No.7 and accommodate R Ashwin for the Adelaide Test. “We’re so chuffed with him,” he remarked. “I think getting us to 150 in that first game was amazing. Just the way he went about his work. He is obviously playing his first pink-ball game. There’s a little bit of work to do. He’s very raw… He’s done everything a young player could do in a very short space of time and we think he’s got a very high ceiling. I guess going into the last Test, we wanted to strengthen the batting and given what we saw of Nitish in the first Test, we kind of thought we could go with what we perceived to be the guys bowling the best spin at the moment, and we feel Ash (Ashwin) is more likely to get wickets on these conditions,” he said on Ashwin replacing Washington Sundar in the XI.
SCORECARD:Â India 180 all out (Nitish Reddy 42; Mitchell Starc 6-48) lead Australia 86/1 (Nathan McSweeney 38*) by 94 runs
