12:39 (IST)
Stumps Day 3 (AUS 133/6 after 66 overs, lead by two runs)
Well, the day belonged to India, particularly the bowlers, as the Aussie batting line up looked fragile, much like the first essay. But a defiant 34-run partnership between Cummins and Green gave the visitors bit of a headache towards the end. Nevertheless, India will fancy wrapping up the remaining batsmen within the first session tomorrow. Australia have taken a lead of two runs at stumps but how far can Green and Cummins take Australia?
That’s it from us today but do join us tomorrow for the live coverage of Day 4. Goodbye!
12:39 (IST)
India skipper Ajinkya Rahane: We played really well. The first session was really good, and the bowlers came out really strong. Unfortunately, Umesh was out. Captaincy’s all about backing your instincts. Credit to bowlers, they bowled really well. (On century) Really special. My best knock I still feel was the one at Lord’s. Still four wickets to go, we haven’t won yet.
12:31 (IST)
After 66 overs,Australia 133/6 ( Cameron Green 17 , Pat Cummins 15)
Ashwin bowls the final over of Day 3. Green goes over mid-off for a boundary off the second. He works the fourth towards mid wicket for a single. Five runs off the over. Australia lead by two runs at stumps.
12:27 (IST)
FOUR! Mid off was up Green went over that region for a boundary. Australia lead by one run with that four.
12:26 (IST)
After 65 overs,Australia 128/6 ( Cameron Green 12 , Pat Cummins 15)
Siraj continues. As expected, with the ball getting older, he isn’t getting that much carry. But just a hint of swing into the right-hander. One run off his over.
12:23 (IST)
After 64 overs,Australia 127/6 ( Cameron Green 11 , Pat Cummins 15)
Ashwin concedes just one off his 22nd over. Cummins drives off the final delivery and the ball lands just short of the mid-wicket fielder. Just one run off the over.
12:20 (IST)
After 63 overs,Australia 126/6 ( Cameron Green 10 , Pat Cummins 15)
Siraj returns to the attack. He bangs the first one short and Cummins ducks under it. Maiden over. India have put in the hard yards so far and with another wicket down, they’ll fancy wrapping up the tail in the first hour or so tomorrow. Australia trail by 5 runs at the end of the over.
12:16 (IST)
After 62 overs,Australia 126/6 ( Cameron Green 10 , Pat Cummins 15)
Ashwin continues. Three runs off his over as Australia trail by five runs at the end of it. India desperately searching for a wicket.
12:12 (IST)
After 61 overs,Australia 123/6 ( Cameron Green 9 , Pat Cummins 13)
Bumrah into his 17th over. A mixture of yorkers and bouncers from the speedster as Australia can only add one run to their tally. Green and Cummins are battling it out, their partnership worth 24 off 82 balls at the end of the over.
12:09 (IST)
After 60 overs, Australia 122/6 ( Cameron Green 9 , Pat Cummins 12)
Ashwin continues. Bowls four consecutive dots before conceding a single from the blade of Cummins, who tucks the penultimate ball to long on. Australia closing in on the deficit as they trail by only nine runs at the end of the over.
12:05 (IST)
After 59 overs,Australia 121/6 ( Cameron Green 9 , Pat Cummins 11)
Bumrah continues from one end. Starts off with two short deliveries, both dots, against Green, who leaves them alone. A no-ball followed by an inch-perfect yorker off the fifth, but Green manages to get bat to it. Tidy over that, just one run off it. Australia trail by 10 runs at the end of the over.
12:00 (IST)
After 58 overs,Australia 120/6 ( Cameron Green 9 , Pat Cummins 11)
Ashwin returns to the attack. Green pushes the third behind point for a single. Cummins has batted well thus far, getting behind the line and defending the deliveries. But he does not get off the mark in this over.
11:57 (IST)
After 57 overs,Australia 119/6 ( Cameron Green 8 , Pat Cummins 11)
Bumrah into his 15th over. Maiden over as India’s pace spearhead mixes up his lengths well.
11:54 (IST)
After 56 overs,Australia 119/6 ( Cameron Green 8 , Pat Cummins 11)
Jadeja continues. Positive intent from Green as he powers one down the ground for a four before getting off the strike. Green joins the party, whacking one towards deep mid-wicket for another four. Nine runs off the over.
11:53 (IST)
FOUR! Second four off Jadeja as Green whacks it towards deep mid wicket.
11:53 (IST)
FOUR! Cummins waits for it and powers it down the ground. Much needed boundary.
11:49 (IST)
After 55 overs,Australia 110/6 ( Cameron Green 4 , Pat Cummins 6)
12 overs left for the day and Bumrah returns to the attack. Two slips, a gully and a short square leg in place. India’s attacking mindset is clear. First maiden for Bumrah.
11:44 (IST)
After 54 overs,Australia 110/6 ( Cameron Green 4 , Pat Cummins 6)
Jadeja continues. Two runs off the over. Another wicket here and Rahane might look to bring back Bumrah, his strike bowler, to clean up the lower order.
11:41 (IST)
After 53 overs,Australia 108/6 ( Cameron Green 3 , Pat Cummins 5)
Siraj continues. And once again, he is right on the money with his line and length. After five consecutive dots, Cummins drives a full delivery through the covers and sneaks a triple.
11:39 (IST)
After 52 overs,Australia 105/6 ( Cameron Green 3 , Pat Cummins 2)
Jadeja into his eighth over. And he bowls his third maiden over. He has been a prolific wicket-taker at the Test level. His strength is bowling wicket to wicket and he did just that in that over.
11:36 (IST)
After 51 overs, Australia 105/6 ( Cameron Green 3 , Pat Cummins 2)
Siraj continues. Massive appeal for LBW against Green off the first but the umpire wasn’t interested. Clearly, the ball was moving down the leg side with the angle. Another tight over, just one run off it, from the blade of Green.
11:31 (IST)
After 50 overs,Australia 104/6 ( Cameron Green 2 , Pat Cummins 2)
Jadeja continues. After conceding a single, he oversteps off the next. But keeps it tight on the remaining deliveries, giving no room to Cummins to free his arms. Two runs off the over.
11:28 (IST)
After 49 overs,Australia 102/6 ( Cameron Green 1 , Pat Cummins 2)
Siraj continues and bowls five consecutive dots before conceding a single as Green gets off the mark.
11:25 (IST)
After 48 overs,Australia 101/6 ( Cameron Green 0 , Pat Cummins 2)
Jadeja continues. India review for caught behind against Paine. There was a spike as the ball went past the skipper’s bat. Pant was keen on the review and indeed, there was an edge there. Cummins joins Green at the crease with Aussies six down. Another successful over for India, two runs and a wicket off it.
11:22 (IST)
OUT! India take a review for caught behind. Jadeja picks up his second wicket. There was a spike as the ball went past skipper Tim Paine’s bat. Pant completed a simple catch behind the stumps. Paine c Pant b Jadeja 1(9)
11:19 (IST)
After 47 overs,Australia 99/5 ( Cameron Green 0 , Tim Paine (C) (W) 1)
Siraj returns to the attack and gets the breakthrough. Head nicked the first one which was well outside off and the edge carried to Mayank at first slip. Australia have lost half their side and once again, it will be up to Paine. Can he rescue the Aussies? Superb over by the Hyderabad pacer, one run and a wicket off it.
11:15 (IST)
OUT! Australia have lost half their side. Siraj returns to the attack and gets the breakthrough as Head edges to Mayank at second slip. Head made the mistake of chasing a delivery that was wide outside off. He could have left that one but probably pressure got the better of him. Head c Agarwal b Siraj 17(46)
11:12 (IST)
After 46 overs,Australia 98/4 ( Travis Head 17 , Cameron Green 0)
Green, the new man in, on strike against Jadeja, who has pitched in with both bat and ball. Another maiden over for Jadeja, his second so far.
11:10 (IST)
After 45 overs, Australia 98/4 (Travis Head 17 , Cameron Green 0)
Ashwin continues as Green joins Head at the crease. Maiden over as Head opts to see off the off-spinner’s 18th over. Pressure mounting on the Aussies here.
11:06 (IST)
After 44 overs,Australia 98/4 ( Travis Head 17 , )
Jadeja into his fourth over. Head tickles the first towards fine leg for a double. Head makes lovely use of the wrists as he flicks the next towards square leg for a single. The sixth delivery skids off the surface and it traps Wade LBW. Australia in some serious trouble. The set batsman departs for 40. Three runs and a wicket off the over.
11:03 (IST)
OUT! Wade, the set batsman, departs for 40 as Jadeja traps him LBW. The left-hander took a review. It pitched outside off, the impact was in line and went on to hit the stumps. It skidded off the surface. Wade lbw b Jadeja 40(137)
10:59 (IST)
After 43 overs,Australia 95/3 ( Matthew Wade 40 , Travis Head 14)
Ashwin continues. Wade extra cautious against him as he gets behind the line of the ball and defends all the six deliveries. Third maiden over for Ashwin.
10:57 (IST)
After 42 overs,Australia 95/3 ( Matthew Wade 40 , Travis Head 14)
Spin from both ends as Jadeja continues. A maiden over for the left-arm spinner as the Head carefully defended his deliveries. Extra bounce off the fifth delivery, indicating that there’s still something in the pitch for the spinners.
10:54 (IST)
After 41 overs,Australia 95/3 ( Matthew Wade 40 , Travis Head 14)
Ashwin into his 16th over. We’ve seen his repertoire today. He has made the adjustments as per the Aussie pitches and the results show. In fact, he’s been way better than Lyon, Australia’s sole specialist spinner. Just one run off the over as the offie continues to build pressure on the Aussie batsmen.
10:51 (IST)
After 40 overs,Australia 94/3 ( Matthew Wade 40 , Travis Head 13)
Jadeja continues from one end. He seems to be giving more flight than usual. Head and Wade are happy to deal with the spinners on the backfoot. At least, that’s how it has been thus far. Four runs off the over, courtesy a double and two singles.
10:48 (IST)
After 39 overs,Australia 90/3 ( Matthew Wade 37 , Travis Head 12)
Ashwin returns to the attack. After two dots, Wade tucks the ball towards mid-wicket for a single. There was an opportunity off the fifth delivery as Head went for a backfoot punch. However, Ashwin didn’t give the batsman any room there. Just one run off the over.
10:44 (IST)
After 38 overs,Australia 89/3 ( Matthew Wade 36 , Travis Head 12)
Bowling change as Ravindra Jadeja, left arm orthodox, comes into the attack. Wade gives the strike to Head, who shows positive intent with a square drive off the second. Three runs in the over.
10:40 (IST)
After 37 overs, Australia 86/3 (Matthew Wade 35 , Travis Head 10)
Bumrah continues. Two slips, a gully and a leg gully in place for Head, who plays three dots before glancing one off his hips towards the leg side. Three runs off the over.
10:37 (IST)
After 36 overs, Australia 84/3 (Matthew Wade 35 , Travis Head 8)
Ashwin into his 14th over. An economical one for him as Head nudges one towards mid-wicket for a double.
10:33 (IST)
After 35 overs, Australia 81/3 (Matthew Wade 34 , Travis Head 6)
Bumrah continues. Head flicks the first towards deep mid wicket and collects a triple. Wade plays two dots before facing a mean bouncer from Bumrah that hit him on the back of the helmet. Concussion test time as the the left-hander gets a check in from the physio. Two bouncers to end the over. Three runs off the over.
10:30 (IST)
Outstanding from India's pace spearhead!
That never happens! Steve Smith bowled leg stump! Credit to Bumrah/Ashwin bowling brilliantly here. @FoxCricket #AUSVIND
— Isa Guha (@isaguha) December 28, 2020
10:27 (IST)
After 34 overs, Australia 78/3 (Matthew Wade 34 , Travis Head 3)
Ashwin continues and he does a tidy job, giving away just a double off his 13th over. The bowlers continue to build pressure on Head and Wade.
10:23 (IST)
After 33 overs, Australia 76/3 (Matthew Wade 31 , Travis Head 3)
Bumrah continues. Smith gets out, clean bowled, the ball clipping the leg stump. Head, the new man in, is welcomed with a dangerous bouncer off the third. Australia are on the backfoot now, it’s evident with their body language. Five runs and a wicket in that over.
10:18 (IST)
OUT! BOWLED! Smith’s woeful run continues. Big wicket this. Bumrah gets the breakthrough. Smith b Bumrah 8(30)
10:16 (IST)
After 32 overs,Australia 67/2 ( Matthew Wade 31 , Steven Smith 8)
Ashwin into his 12th over. Bowls five consecutive dots before conceding a boundary, courtesy a misfield by Mayank at mid-on.
10:15 (IST)
FOUR! Misfield by Mayank at mid-on and it fetches Wade a boundary. That will release a bit of pressure.
10:13 (IST)
After 31 overs,Australia 67/2 ( Matthew Wade 27 , Steven Smith 8)
Two slips, leg gully and a square leg in place as Bumrah bowls a maiden over. The Aussies seem to be extra cautious against him and Ashwin.
10:09 (IST)
After 30 overs,Australia 67/2 ( Matthew Wade 27 , Steven Smith 8)
Ashwin continues. Smith plays the first ball with the spin, tucking it to mid wicket. The second delivery takes off the rough and bamboozles Wade, who follows it up with four consecutive dots. One run off the over.
10:06 (IST)
After 29 overs,Australia 66/2 ( Matthew Wade 27 , Steven Smith 7)
We’re back after the tea break and Jasprit Bumrah has the ball. Smith defends a full delivery and sneaks a single off the first while Wade sees off the remainder of the over.
09:43 (IST)
After 28 overs,Australia 65/2 ( Matthew Wade 27 , Steven Smith 6)
Ashwin concedes one off the final over of the session, managing to deceiving Wade off the second delivery that kicks up slightly after pitching on good length after off. Short leg’s in play two balls later, but the ball appears to have deflected off Wade’s pad.
And Australia head to tea at 65/2, trailing the Indians by another 66 runs with eight wickets in hand. Australia will hope Smith breaks his woeful run with the bat with a big score today, with Wade already well on his way towards a fifty. India, meanwhile, will need an early wicket if they are to keep the target as low as possible.
India vs Australia 2020 Live score and latest update of 2nd Test at Melbourne: Well, the day belonged to India, particularly the bowlers, as the Aussie batting line up looked fragile, much like the first essay. But a defiant 34-run partnership between Cummins and Green gave the visitors bit of headache towards the end. Nevertheless, India will fancy wrapping up the remaining batsmen within the first session tomorrow. Australia have taken a lead of two runs at stumps but how far can Green and Cummins take Australia tomorrow?
It was a determined and crucial knock against a world-class attack by the mild-mannered 32-year-old, who assumed the captaincy from Virat Kohli after he returned home for the birth of his first child.
Batting at four, he faced 200 balls for his 104 to steer India to 277 for five before rain ended play 15 minutes early. Ravindra Jadeja was not out 40.
The hosts took just four wickets during a frustrating day in the field as the match began to slip away with India zeroing in on levelling the series after losing the first Test by eight wickets in Adelaide.
"Not our best day, but not our worst," said Australia's Mitchell Starc, who has two wickets but also saw catches put down off his bowling.
"Jinx (Rahane) batted really well through the day there and they had some pretty good partnerships.
"I thought there was some really good stuff from us as well, we just didn't capitalise on some of the chances we created to finish in a better position.
"We're just going to have to back up tomorrow and take five wickets as quick as we can."
While Rahane was the hero, it was a gutsy Indian team performance, with three 50-plus wicket partnerships to help silence their critics after being skittled for their all-time low of 36 last week.
Debutant Shubman Gill chipped in with an impressive 45 and paid tribute to Rahane.
"His knock was all about patience. Sometimes against such a high-quality bowling attack you go into your shell and then you're not able to score runs," he said.
"The way Ajinkya played, it was such a magnificent knock to watch, the way he saw off the tough periods and the loose balls he was making sure he put them all away."
Problems
On a steamy day at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, India resumed on 36 for one in reply to Australia's first innings 195, having weathered 11 overs on Saturday when they lost Mayank Agarwal for a duck to Starc.
In an action-packed morning, the Australian attack consistently hit its line and length with Pat Cummins bagging Gill then the experienced Cheteshwar Pujara for 17.
That brought Rahane to the crease and—first with Hanuma Vihari, then Rishabh Pant and finally Jadeja— he built half-century stands to put India in a strong position.
He brought up his 12th Test ton in his 67th game, and his second in Melbourne, with a four off Cummins, but he enjoyed some good fortune.
Australia removed first slip during Starc's first spell in the final session and lived to regret it with Rahane getting an edge on 57 that would almost certainly have been caught if the fielder was there.
He had a huge let-off on 73 when he was dropped at second slip by Steve Smith and again on 104 when the ball popped out of Travis Head's hands as he landed after taking the catch.
Jadeja, back in the team after missing the first Test injured, ably supported Rahane after Vihari fell for 21 attempting to sweep Nathan Lyon, with Smith taking the catch.
That brought the exuberant Pant to the crease. Preferred to Wriddhiman Saha as wicketkeeper, he scored a breezy 29 before becoming Starc's 250th Test victim, caught by Tim Paine for his 150th dismissal.
India were reduced to 64 for three before lunch after Cummins caused all sorts of problems.
He signalled his intent with the first ball of the day, which zipped past Pujara's bat. Paine called for a review, believing it took a nick, but replays showed it was not out.
Cummins finally got the wicket he deserved when Gill, who added 17 to his overnight score, got a nick and Paine took the catch. He then removed Pujara, again enticing an edge with Paine holding a brilliant diving catch.
With inputs from AFP
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