Join us for updates, analysis and color from the first day of the Brisbane test
Welcome to our live report on the third day of the Australia-India trial from Sydney. Join us for updates, analysis and color. You can find the traditional ball-by-ball statement here
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9.35m local / 5.05m IST: ‘Three Tests and 10 Balls’
My colleague Gaurav Sundararaman has told the story of the Indian invasion with those words. That is the general experience of India’s bowling attack today. Ashwin out with a back spasm, Bumrah out as expected. Two debaters. India’s fifth bowler, perhaps the sixth choice in the fast bowling roster, leads the pack today: Mohammed Siraj, who is all of two old trials.
Fun fact: India has not had a left-arm sailor in their XI since Zaheer Khan retired in 2014.
9.26m local / 4.56m IST: Debuts galore
So we have seen T Natarajan and Washington Sundar get caps in the Indian fort. Great day for the Tamil Nadu team friends. Natarajan is the fastest man to get debuts in all forms after starting in one – he held an ODI debate on Dec. 2, without being part of the plans for the series until Varun Charkravarthy – another TN player – injured. He is going to be a 300th Test player in India.
Washington Sundar is in the same boat – just around as a web archer on this tour but suddenly fills up. A first class first level batsman, as well as his main skill in bowling breaking. We suspect he is replacing Ravindra Jadeja in a direct swap.
9.05m local / 4.35m IST
Good morning and welcome back to our broadcast of the final game of an explosive, amazing series. Almost a day of this Test series has maintained its quality. And perhaps the only argument against that is the fringe drama on the final day of the Sydney Test; but there have been arguments, non-stop and loud, all around for the last few days. Today is the opportunity to repeat about emotional cricket. And there will, perhaps, even a deliberate devaluement from Tim Paine and his men who will keep the win in many ways coming into this game; India’s medical record has kept going, so much so that they have had to abandon their new tradition of naming the XI days before they started. It touches and goes for many big names today – Ashwin, Bumrah, Agarwal. Add to that the fact that he has his game at the Gabba, where Australia have not lost since 1988. Their main bats are in shape again, and their archers will have another crack at a softened batting line.
That’s not to say India is completely out of it, of course. Every time they’ve been down this series, they’ve proven their ability to kick back. At 1-1 coming into this match, they are still in the Border-Gavaskar Cup. And 1-1 is all that is needed to hold on to the next round. The highest order starts, fifties, and takes over the crease firmly over the last hotel – will a last century come from one of the top three? One of many interesting questions for after we’ve experienced the big man’s response – are 12 men on their feet to put on a team sheet today?
Varun Shetty is a sub-editor at ESPNcricinfo