A pair of unlikely third-day batting heroes Sunday gave India a fighting possibility of securing the draw they require in the fourth Test against Australia to retain the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Washington Sundar and Shardul Thakur, in just his second Test, place on 123 runs for the seventh wicket — a record for India at the Gabba — taking their group from a precarious 186 for six to 309 just before Thakur was bowled by Pat Cummins for an entertaining 67.
All-rounder Sundar, on debut, batted nicely with the tail till he guided a Mitchell Starc quick ball to Cameron Green in the gully to fall for 62.
By the time Mohammad Siraj was bowled by Josh Hazlewood, providing him figures of 5-57, India had reached 336, only 33 runs behind Australia’s very first innings total of 369.
Australian openers Marcus Harris and David Warner survived six testing overs as Australia completed the third day on 21 without having loss, a lead of 54 runs with all 10 second innings wickets intact.
Without Sundar and Thakur, India, would have been in far higher difficulty against an Australia side who have to win the match to regain the Border-Gavaskar Trophy with the 4-match series locked at 1-1.
The two smashed the preceding seventh-wicket record for India at the Gabba of 58, set by Kapil Dev and Manoj Prabhakar in 1991.
India’s prime-order batsmen all squandered possibilities to score heavily, with all but Shubman Gill finding begins but all except Cheteshwar Pujara falling to rash shots.
– Defiant stand –
The guests started the extended morning session on 62 for two, with Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane at the crease.
Both males looked to retain the scoreboard ticking more than, in contrast to Saturday afternoon, exactly where they have been more intent on survival.
They saw off Starc and Cummins but Hazlewood was introduced into the attack and made a brilliant more than which led to Pujara’s downfall.
Hazlewood had Pujara in difficulty when a quick ball followed him as he attempted to evade it, the ball hitting his glove and falling just quick of Cameron Green in the gully.
But two deliveries later Hazlewood got a ball to angle in, then straighten slightly to catch the outdoors edge of Pujara’s bat and Australia’s captain and wicketkeeper Tim Paine took a routine catch.
Rahane and Mayank Agarwal steadied the ship but with the lunch break in sight, Rahane could not resist playing at a wide ball from left-arm paceman Starc angling across his body and edged a comfy catch to Matthew Wade at fourth slip.
The Indian captain, on 37, threw his head back in disgust at the manner of his dismissal just before trudging off.
The Indians started the second session at 161 for 4 with the risky Agarwal and Rishabh Pant at the crease.
However, like Rahane, each Agarwal and Pant fell to injudicious shots.
Agarwal slashed at a wide delivery from Cummins’ second ball just after the resumption to fall for 38, caught at second slip by Steve Smith.
Then to compound India’s challenges, Pant did the exact same to Hazlewood, only to be caught in the gully by Green for 23.
At that stage Australia have been in command of the Test but Sundar, playing his very first Test, and Thakur, in his second, had other concepts and defied the bowling attack with a mixture of strong defence and eye-catching stroke creating.
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