- That's a wrap up from our end. Australia leads by 296 runs as Marnus and Green held fort. India would be proud of themselves as they showed they have a stomach for a fight. It's a tall order but India is not completely out of the game but Australia are on top thus far. We will see you tomorrow as India fight it out for the elusive World Test Championship final.
A sum up of what conspired today:
Australia reached 123 for four at stumps in their second innings to extend the overall lead to 296 runs against India on the third day of the World Test Championship final here on Friday. At stumps, Marnus Labuschagne and Cameron Green were batting on 41 and 7 respectively. Resuming on overnight 151 for five, India lost KS Bharat early but Ajinkya Rahane (89) and Shardul Thakur (51) added 109 runs for the seventh wicket to help their team avoid follow-on at The Oval.
However, India lost the remaining wickets quickly after the lunch break to end at 296 in 69.4 overs. Skipper Pat Cummins picked up three wickets for Australia while there were two wickets apiece for Mitchell Starc, Scott Boland and Cameron Green.
Brief scores:
Australia: 469 and 123/4 in 44 overs (Marnus Labuschagne 41 batting; Ravindra Jadeja 2/15).
India 1st innings: 296 all out in 69.4 overs (Ajinkya Rahane 89, Shardul Thakur 51, Ravindra Jadeja 48; Pat Cummins 3/83).
WTC Final Scoreboard: India vs Australia, Day 3 Stumps
Australia 1st Innings: 469
India 1st Innings:
Rohit Sharma lbw b Cummins 15
Shubman Gill b Boland 13
Cheteshwar Pujara b Green 14
Virat Kohli c Smith b Starc 14
Ajinkya Rahane c Green b Cummins 89
Ravindra Jadeja c Smith b Lyon 48
Srikar Bharat b Boland 5
Shardul Thakur c Carey b Green 51
Umesh Yadav b Cummins 5
Mohammed Shami c Carey b Starc 13
Mohammed Siraj not out 0
Extras: (B-10, LB-10, NB-8, W-1) 29
Total: (All out in 69.4 overs) 296
Fall of wickets: 1-30, 2-30, 3-50, 4-71, 5-142, 6-152, 7-261, 8-271, 9-294, 10-296 Bowling: Mitchell Starc 13.4-0-71-2, Pat Cummins 20-2-83-3, Scott Boland
20-6-59-2, Cameron Green 12-1-44-2, Nathan Lyon 4-0-19-1.
Australia 2nd Innings
Usman Khawaja c Bharat b Yadav 13
David Warner c Bharat b Mohd Siraj 1
Marnus Labuschagne batting 41
Steven Smith c Thakur b Jadeja 34
Travis Head c & b Jadeja 18
Cameron Green batting 7
Extras: (B-4 LB-2 NB-2 W-1) 9
Total: (For 4 wickets in 44 overs) 123
Fall of wickets: 1/2 2/24 3/86 4/111
Bowling: Mohammed Shami 10-4-17-0, Mohammed Siraj 12-2-41-1, Shardul Thakur 6-1-13-0, Umesh Yadav 7-1-21-1, Ravindra Jadeja 9-3-25-2.
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- Ravindra Jadeja has scalped Steven Smith (36) and Travis Head (18) in quick succession. Cameron Green on strike with Marnus Labuschangne. Australia has a lead that is fast approaching 300 but India are slowly showing signs of a comeback. Meanwhile, Head earlier went for a biggie and Umesh Yadav missed a simple catch at the mid-wicket but the next delivery saw Head offering a simple catch to Jadeja that sent him back to pavilion. Too good from the all-round as pitch has roughened up a bit and Jadeja is being able to extract turn from the strip.
- The big fish, Steve Smith (34) has been dismissed by Ravindra Jadeja. He looks very disappointed while heading towards the pavilion.
- Umesh Yadav bowls outside off stump lines and fetches Khawaja's edge. Australia 2 down now and the momentum is slowly shifting towards India. Australia still the favourites.
Until Tea...
Australia were 23 for one in their second innings at tea on the third day of the World Test Championship Final against India here on Friday. Usman Khawaja (13 batting) and Marnus Labuschagne (8 batting) were at the crease. Mohammed Siraj was the lone wicket-taker for India, removing David Warner for 1. Australia led India by 196 runs.
Earlier, replying to Australia's 469, India were all out for 296 in 69.4 overs. Ajinkya Rahane could not score a century (89 off 129 balls) on comeback as he departed in the second over after lunch, brilliantly caught by Cameron Green at gully off skipper Pat Cummins. Resuming the day on 151 for five, India lost wicketkeeper-batter KS Bharat (5) early when Scott Boland cleaned him up. But the pair of Rahane and Shardul Thakur (51) led India's resistance.
Brief scores:
Australia 1st Innings: 469
India 1st Innings: 296 all out in 69.4 overs (Ajinkya Rahane 89, Shardul Thakur 51; Pat Cummins 3/83).
Australia 2nd Innings: 23 for 1 in 11 overs (Usman Khawaja 13 not out; Mohammed Siraj 1/14).
WTC Final Scoreboard: India vs Australia, Tea board
Australia 1st Innings: 469
India 1st Innings:
Rohit Sharma lbw b Cummins 15
Shubman Gill b Boland 13
Cheteshwar Pujara b Green 14
Virat Kohli c Smith b Starc 14
Ajinkya Rahane c Green b Cummins 89
Ravindra Jadeja c Smith b Lyon 48
Srikar Bharat b Boland 5
Shardul Thakur c Carey b Green 51
Umesh Yadav b Cummins 5
Mohammed Shami c Carey b Starc 13
Mohammed Siraj not out 0
Extras: (B-10, LB-10, NB-8, W-1)
29
Total: (All out in 69.4 overs) 296
Fall of wickets: 1-30, 2-30, 3-50, 4-71, 5-142, 6-152, 7-261, 8-271, 9-294, 10-296
Bowling: Mitchell Starc 13.4-0-71-2, Pat Cummins 20-2-83-3, Scott Boland 20-6-59-2, Cameron Green 12-1-44-2, Nathan Lyon 4-0-19-1.
Australia 2nd Innings:
Usman Khawaja not out 13
David Warner c Bharat b Mohammed Siraj 1
Marnus Labuschagne not out 8
Extras: (W-1) 1
Total: (For 1 wicket in 11 overs) 23
Fall of wickets: 1-2
Bowling: Mohammed Shami 4-1-5-0, Mohammed Siraj 5-2-14-1, Shardul Thakur 2-0-4-0.
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- David Warner is gone scoring 1 run. A beautiful away going delivery that took outside edge, and travelled into the gloves of Bharat. Siraj is bowling beautifully at the moment.
- Australia has wrapped India up for 296 runs with wickets of Shardul and Rahane. India showed plenty of fight today and would look to do the trick with the ball.
- Thakur has been dismissed on 51 runs. India still six runs shy of 300. Reaching those three numbers will be a massive morale boost to the side. Green takes his wicket to an out-swinger, caught by Carey.
- Shardul Thakur has scored a fighting half-century, shows grit and gumption and Indians are not relenting easily here.
- Umesh Yadav (5) has lost his wicket to Cummins. Meanwhile, Shami is at the crease as Shardul approaches his half-century. Shami has struck two boundaries and it would be huge relief to the Indian camp if they manage to reach the 300-mark.
- India's last hope, Ajinkya Rahane has been dismissed by Cummins. Green takes a blinder at the slips. It's a sight that must have broken a billion hearts, hoping Rahane to sail through his century. He scores 89.
So far in the match:
Ajinkya Rahane stood tall amid the ruins in his comeback game as he showed remarkable skill and courage against a hostile Australian pace attack to take India to 260 for six at lunch on day three of the World Test Championship Final here on Friday. India remained behind in the game despite the resilience of Rahane (89 batting off 122). Giving him much needed support was Shardul Thakur (36 batting off 83), who survived two nasty blows on his forearm and was dropped twice.
India, who resumed the day at 151 for five in response to Australia's 469, need 10 runs to avoid follow-on. It was commendable that India managed to score 109 runs in 22 overs bowled in the session on Friday. The way Scott Boland and Pat Cummins got the ball to kick off length in the first hour, once could sense a wicket off every ball. Boland ripped through the defences of K S Bharat on the second ball of the day as the Indian wicketkeeper had no answer to a delivery that jagged back in sharply from length.
Cummins looked equally threatening from other end and hit Thakur's forearm on back-to-back balls with extra bounce, requiring physio's intervention. Like Thakur, Rahane too had luck going his way as he dropped by David Warner at first slip when he was on 72. After getting a few streaky boundaries, Rahane got his fifty with a spectacular six off Cummins over fine leg. The Australian skipper angled one into his body and Rahane made room to pull it for a maximum.
His best shot of the morning was a cover drive off Cameron Green and it came after a thick edge that flew over the slip cordon, showing that one had to take his chances on this wicket. The final moments of the session were full of action. Rahane got consecutive fours off Nathon Lyon via a back foot punch and a crisp drive through the cover. The last over before lunch saw Thakur being adjudged lbw but it ended up being a no ball from Cummins. The Aussie skipper had also overstepped after trapping Rahane in front of the stumps on day two.
Australia 1st Innings: 469
India 1st Innings:
Rohit Sharma lbw b Cummins 15
Shubman Gill b Boland 13
Cheteshwar Pujara b Green 14
Virat Kohli c Smith b Starc 14
Ajinkya Rahane not out 89
Ravindra Jadeja c Smith b Lyon 48
Srikar Bharat b Boland 5
Shardul Thakur not out 36
Extras: (B-9 LB-9 NB-8) 26
Total: (For 6 wickets in 60 overs) 260
Fall of wickets: 1/30 2/30 3/50 4/71 5/142 6/152
Bowling: Mitchell Starc 13-0-69-1, Pat Cummins 16-2-65-1, Scott Boland 16-4-47-2, Cameron Green 11-1-42-1, Nathan Lyon 4-0-19-1.
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- Rahane is combining caution with aggression. He has left the ball well, thrown his bat whenever required and is keeping India in the game so far. He reaches his half century with Shardul Thakur playing his role to perfection so far.
- It's today's second ball and Boland cleans up Bharat. Identical to what Gill and Pujara had to endure. India lose another, match fast slipping away now. Bharat scored 5 runs. Eyes on Shardul and Ajinkya.
Rise and shine, folks! We are back on the Day 3 of the Test match between India and Australia with the former still reeling with combined failures of batting and bowling barring Siraj and Rahane. Will India be able to cope? Well, the sun is out and the pitch appears the same but the tall, strong Australian fast bowlers have a knack of getting something more out of the strip. It's up to the Indian batters to resume in earnest and dictate, if not dominate.
Earlier yesterday:
Top-order failure leaves India with mountain to climb
The failure of India's famed top-order against a high-quality pace attack in a pressure game put Australia in firm control of the World Test Championship final here on Thursday. Ravindra Jadeja (48 off 51 balls) and Ajinkya Rahane (29 batting off 71) offered hope to the partisan Indian supporters at The Oval with a 71-run stand off 100 balls before the former fell to Nathan Lyon 20 minutes before close of play.
India were reeling at 151 for five at stumps in response to Australia's first innings score of 469, trailing by 318 runs. While the Indian bowlers failed to use the bouncer effectively on day one, the likes of Shubman Gill (13) and Cheteshwar Pujara (14) committed the cardinal sin of misjudging the line and length on a pitch with variable bounce.
Credit should also go to the relentless Australian pace trio of Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins and Scott Boland, who got much more out of The Oval surface than their Indian counterparts. Australia added 142 runs to their overnight total for the loss of seven wickets before being bowled out one hour into the afternoon session. Mohammed Siraj cleaned up the tail and was the pick of India's bowlers with four wickets.
Leaving the ball is a key element of batting in English conditions and that is where Gill and Pujara were found wanting. The in-form Gill showed promise before he inexplicably decided to leave an incoming ball from Boland, leaving his stumps rattled. Pujara, who had the advantage of being in England well before his teammates arrived, offered no shot to a length ball from Cameron Green that cut in sharply from fourth stump.
The slide began with the fall of skipper Rohit Sharma (15) who missed an angled in ball from Cummins in the sixth over to be trapped lbw. Indian superstar Virat Kohli (14) got a snorter from Mitchell Starc that he could not do much about, leaving India at 71 for four. Rahane and Jadeja tried to hang in there but the Aussie pacers were constantly asking questions.
Rahane also had some luck going his way as he was adjudged lbw off a Cummins no ball when he was batting on 17. Jadeja showed good intent with his innings comprising seven fours and a fine flick off Boland that went all the way for a six. India were 37 for two in 10 overs at the tea break with the openers already back in the hut.
After the lunch break, Alex Carey pushed Australia past 450 with a 48 off 69 balls. His innings included a six off Jadeja but an attempted reverse sweep the following ball led to his downfall, trapping him in front of the stumps. India got themselves back in the game with four wickets in the morning session but Australia maintained their upper hand by reaching 422 for seven at lunch, following Steve Smith's 31st hundred.
Resuming the day on 327 for three, Travis Head (163 off 174) and Smith (121 off 268) walked into the middle under bright sunshine at The Oval. Smith, who was on 95 overnight, got two freebies on the pads from Mohammed Siraj in the first over of the day and he happily put them away for consecutive boundaries to complete his seventh hundred in England and third at the venue.
India were guilty of not using the short ball tactic early enough on the opening day but Siraj went for that from the get on Thursday. Mohammed Shami too tried to mix it up with an odd bouncer but was not able to get the same zip from the surface as Siraj. While Smith was not bothered by India's tactic, Head looked in a bit of discomfort. Siraj banged one short onto his body in the sixth over of the day and Head walked across the stumps to pull it but ended up edging it to wicketkeeper K S Bharat, ending an epic 285-run stand.
Cameron Green was the next to go as he went for an expansive drive off a full ball from Shami but ended up being caught at second slip by an alert Gill. The prized wicket of Smith came out of nowhere as he dragged an innocuous ball from Shardul Thakur back on to his stumps. It was Thakur's first ball of the day, highlighting his uncanny ability to provide a breakthrough out of the blue. A brilliant piece of fielding from substitute Axar Patel got India their fourth wicket of the day as his one-handed direct hit from mid off left Mitchell Starc well short of his ground.
