Day 3 of the third Test between India and Australia has ended with the hosts at 103/2, leading India by 197 runs.
The two Aussie wickets to fall on the day were of their openers Will Pucovski and David Warner. Pucovski, playing his debut game, fell victim to Siraj’s bowling as he edged one to keeper Wriddhiman Saha, while batting on 10. Australia’s score 16/1.
Marnus Labuschagne then joined David Warner out in the middle and the pair added 19 runs to the total before R Ashwin picked his first wicket of the match. Warner trapped lbw on 13.
Steve Smith (29) and Labuschagne (47) then batted the day out, with Australia holding a 197 runs lead.
Earlier, India were bowled out for 244 in their first innings to concede a 94-run lead to Australia. Pat Cummins was the wrecker-in-chief taking 4/29.
Cheteshwar Pujara scored a half century while three Indian batters were run out on the day, two by Marnus Labuschangne.
Overnight batters Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara added 20 runs to the team’s total before the Indian skipper became the first wicket to fall on the day as he edged a Pat Cummins delivery straight into the stumps. Out on 22, reducing India to 117/3.
Hanuma Vihari then joined Pujara and the pair added 25 runs before Vihari was found short of his crease while taking a run. A direct hit from Josh Hazlewood and he was walking back after scoring 4.
The arrival of Rishabh Pant saw an increase in the run rate as he added 38 runs with Pujara for the fifth wicket in the 11.4 overs before Lunch.
However, post-lunch, the batters succumbed to the new ball as the Aussie pace duo Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins kept an immaculate line and length.
India lost four wickets for 15 runs to lose track.
Cummins was the first to get under India's skin as he hit Pant on his elbow. The left-handed wicketkeeper-batsman seemed to have got rattled after that and went for an expansive drive off Hazlewood only to edge it to first slip. Pant has since been taken to the hospital for scans and India have Wriddhiman Saha keeping during Australia’s second innings.
Pujara was the next to fall, in the next over, as he nicked a back-of-the-length delivery from Cummins to wicketkeeper Tim Paine.
Ashwin, Navdeep and Bumrah could not add too many runs to the team’s total with Ashwin and Bumrah getting run out by Marnus Labuschagne and Navdeep Saini falling to Mitch Starc on 4.
The final partnership or Ravindra Jadeja and Siraj added 28 runs off the 26 deliveries they faced with Jadeja remaining not out on 28. He took a hit to his thumb as well while batting, so it needs to be seen if he will bowl during the Aussie innings.
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