India vs Australia (IND vs AUS) 2nd Test Day 4 Highlights: India, chasing a target of 70 for victory in the 2nd Test at MCG, got there with 8 wickets in hand.
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Australia built on their slender overnight lead in the morning session. Cameron Green (45) mounted a counter-attack but was dismissed with one hour left. Australia were bowled out for 200 in the last over of the session, having put on a lead of 69. India lost the quick wickets of Mayank Agarwal and Cheteshwar Pujara but Ajinkya Rahane (27*) and Shubman Gill (35*) put on a confident show in the chase to take India home with 8 wickets in hand. India have thus drawn the series level at 1-1.
2nd Test, MCG, Melbourne, 25 Dec, 2020
Australia Playing XI: Tim Paine (c), Joe Burns, Pat Cummins, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Matthew Wade
India Playing XI: Ajinkya Rahane (captain), Mayank Agarwal, Hanuma Vihari, Cheteshwar Pujara, Shubman Gill, Rishabh Pant (wk), Jasprit Bumrah, Umesh Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Mohammed Siraj
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Missing star players, like their regular skipper Virat Kohli, and having suffered such a demoralizing defeat recently, India's win at the MCG is being hailed as a 'historic' win.
READ | ‘A really special win’: Former cricketers hail Ajinkya Rahane, Team India’s character
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Tim Paine: "Pretty disappointed. We played some poor cricket, sloppy cricket for a major part of the game. Credit to India, they forced us into mistakes with the bat, ball and also on the field. And when you do that against a quality team, it costs you."
Ajinkya Rahane: "Want to give credit to the debutants Siraj and Gill, the character they showed after the Adelaide loss was great to see. Character was important for us, especially after losing Umesh in the second innings. That (five-bowler plan) worked well for us nicely. We were thinking of having an all-rounder and Jadeja has been brilliant for us. Shubman, we all know his First-class career and in this game, he has shown the intent to play shots at this level. Has shown composure. Siraj has shown that he can bowl with discipline."
Depleted of their star players - no Kohli, no Ishant, no Shami - and coming on the back of a historic capitulation in Adelaide, this is a massive result for India. A huge result for Rahane the captain. Who maintains a 100% record as India captain. The only centurion in the match and it was fitting that he hit the winning run.
Shubman Gill gets India closer to the finish with a boundary. Then it's Rahane, fittingly, who hits the winning run. India win by 8 wickets. Gill stays unbeaten on 35, Rahane on 27.
Shubman Gill, whose thunder has been stolen by an onslaught from the skipper Rahane himself, pulls for four against Hazlewood. India inch closer to the win. Rahane goes aerial and is dropped in the deep, by Starc. Not that it looks like it matters much at this stage, but Australia have let down an unbelievably number of catches this Test. IND 60/2 after 14, need 10 more to win
Rahane slashes against Hazlewood - four! Pulls with power off the next ball. Rahane can see the shoreline and he wants to get there with a leap. Surely, the danger is over for India and they can afford to take this cavalier an approach. Rahane ends the over with another four crashed through covers. IND 52/2 after 11, need 18 more to win
There are huge LBW shout but there is an inside edge. Rahane drives Cummins on the front foot. Lot of confidence in the way both batsmen are batting. Hazlewood introduced into the attack in the 9th over. Gill finds the boundary with a drive against Cummins in the 10th over too. IND 42/2 after 10, need 28 more to win
India's run rate today 4.2. Australia's run rate today was less than 2.
Rahane gets off the mark with a strong pull that goes for four. Gill gets more handy runs against Starc. There's a fair flow of runs in this Rahane-Gill partnership now. IND 33/2 after 7, need 37 more to win
Pujara walks in at 3. Starc swerves the inswingers into him, but Pujara successfuly flicks away to the leg side to get off the mark. But Pujara is out too in the next over. India lose Pujara now - edged and caught at gully. He goes for 3. India still 51 runs away from the win and 2 wickets down. Is there a twist in the tail in this Test? IND 19/2, need 51 more to win
It's Starc's turn now. Shubman Gill drives Starc down the ground, for four. We have had three very impressive debuts in this Test - and all three of them have played big parts in today's action. Gill is batting at a strike rate of 100 in these early stages. Mayank Agarwal is gone against the run of play though. Nicks through to the keeper. It's Starc who strikes. IND 15/1 after 4.2, need 54 more to win
There is a half-chance in the first over. Shubman Gill is 'dropped' by Wade at short leg. It was hit with force though, would have taken a miracle to stick, that catch. Gill comes up with a signature cover drive in the second over as Pat Cummins partners Starc. IND 9/0, need 61 more to win
India begin their chase as the second session starts. Mitchell Starc will bowl the first over. Mayank Agarwal and Shubman Gill walk out to open the innings. Starc cuts Mayank in half with the first ball of the innings.
Australia's 2nd innings score inches along to 200. Ashwin bowls the last over of the session. And gets the last wicket. Hazlewood is out. Australia are bowled out for 200. India will need 70 runs to win. Play will resume after the Lunch break.
Hazlewood is staying deep in his crease to counter the short balls. He is also poking and prodding at a few outside his off stump. Surely it's a matter of time that one of these outswingers from Siraj gets an edge off him. With a maximum of 10 minutes left before Lunch, Ashwin's spin is brought back. The lead still in the sixties, and not budging much. Ashwin takes a Review for LBW against Hazlewood, but fails.
AUS 199/9, lead by 68
The session could well be extended (up to half an hour before a late Lunch is taken), with Bumrah brought back to have a crack at Australia's No.11. Some short stuff in there again. Hazlewood fends away awkwardly. Siraj, at the other end, gets some movement in the air.
AUS 193/9, lead by 62
Some words exchanged between the Indians and Starc in the aftermath of that Review - one of the strangest Reviews. But it's forgotten the next over as Siraj gets Lyon to put through a catch to the keeper. He goes for 3. That's the 9th wicket and the 3rd wicket for Siraj. Australia down to their last pair - Hazlewood and Starc.
AUS 185/9, lead by 54
Rahane keeps rotating his bowlers, hoping one of them will deliver the knockout punch. Jadeja is the one who does it! Starc is out. He Reviews. Jadeja is congratulated all around. But the decision is overturned by the Review. No conclusive evidence that he had bat on that. Starc survives. AUS 185/8 after 96, lead by 54
Two slips and a man catching at mid-wicket now as Starc and Lyon try to see the innings through to Lunch. Ashwin is brought into the attack. Lyon would be eyeing the cracks Ashwin is targeting, but would not want to be out there facing Ashwin for longer than he has to. AUS 181/8, lead by 50
Gone! Green plays one shot too many and perishes in the process. Drives Siraj for four. Goes aerial against him later in the same over. And it's an easy catch for Jadeja. Green is gone for 45. He was giving Australia hope. This wicket gets India one step closer to the win. AUS 177/8, lead by 46
Cameron Green crunches a cut for four against Bumrah. Growing in stature, Cameron Green. Moves into his 40s. Bumrah off the attack after a 4-over spell, Siraj replaces him and starts with a maiden. AUS 172/7 after 90, lead by 41
Mitch Starc is the new man in at 9. Is greeted by a few short balls to test if he had a good night's sleep. Does competently enough. Bumrah persists with short balls against Green now too. Has been encouraged by the Cummins dismissal to try the short ball plan. Cameron Green is trying to keep Starc away from the new ball. AUS 160/7 after 85, lead by 29
Bumrah does it! With the short ball! Cummins's fight is finally ended. He goes for 22, off 103 balls. Australia's tail is now exposed. AUS 156/7, lead by 25
India take the new ball in the 81st over. Bumrah brought back. No Siraj yet. Ashwin continues. Green slashes a cut against Ashwin for four - the first boundary of Dy 4 comes after 52 minutes. Australia cross 150 in the 82nd over. This pair continues to take sneaky singles.
AUS lead by 23
Jadeja comes on too, Siraj taken off. Rahane managing his bowlers smartly with a barrage from Bumrah and Siraj presumably to follow the second new ball spell set to follow now. It's time for a spin combo now, with Cummins and Green ticking the scoreboard along risklessly. 50 partnership comes up, off 191 balls - the niggest partnership of this innings.
AUS 149/6 after 80, lead by 18
Ashwin making things happen! Gets an outside edge off Cummins again. In the 76th over, he finally thinks he has got his man. The ball turns sharply into Cummins's pads. Ashwin convinces Rahane to go for the Review. But Ball Tracking shows the ball would have been going over the stumps. India lose a Review, both teams have 1 Review remaining.
AUS lead by 13
Another chance! Ashwin gets an edge to balloon up from Cummins. But there's no backward short leg! Ball drops in no man's land. Siraj replaces Bumrah. Bumrah no doubt being kept fresh for the new ball. Could Siraj get the old ball to reverse like he had in the 1st innings? Some excitable Indian fielders at the moment, this could turn out to be a test of Rahane's captaincy if morning does show the day today.
AUS lead by 10
There's an edge! The first chance for India. Cummins nicks through off Bumrah, the ball lands just short of Pujara at slip. The first 15 minutes have seen not too much dramatic stuff happening. India's emotion needs to be layered with patience today, tweets Harsha Bhogle.
AUS lead by 6
Some quick running between the wicket between Green and Cummins to start off the day for Australia. India bowl Ashwin from the other end. Umesh's injury has depleted the bowling attack for the rest of the match. Given India's bad history with tails, the lack of a 5th bowler could come to bite them if this partnership frustrates for long today. AUS lead by 5 runs
Cummins and Green have entered the arena. As have the 11 Indians. As expected, it is Bumrah who will bowl the first over of the day. There's a single off the first ball. AUS lead by 3
'I love the smell of napalm in the morning,' a certain wise man said many years ago. For fans of Indian cricket tuning into watch Test matches in Australia though, the ultimate prize is on offer today - the scent of victory. Once India break through the Cummins-Green partnership, the hosts are down to their bowlers. So, expect Bumrah to be running up with his tail up and the batsmen trying to stick on for dear life when play begins.
Day 4 to begin in around 20 more minutes
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Hello and welcome to our live coverage of Day 4 of the Boxing Day Test, where India are firmly on the front foot. Australia have a slender lead of 2 runs with their score on 133/6 in the second innings. Pat Cummins and Cameron Green put up a dogged resistance till the end of day yesterday. If they can bat out the opening hour today, India will start to worry and Australia will start to believe, but at the moment, Rahane looks likely to maintain his flawless international captaincy record.
Play begins at 5 am IST.