Australia 255 for 4 (Khawaja 104*, Green 49*, Shami 2-65) vs India.
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It was a fascinating day of test match cricket which belongs to Australia, after visiting team ends Day 1 on 255 for 4. Usman Khawaja’s magnificent hundred and Cameron Green’s counterattack late in the day helps Australia takes the honors on Day 1.
Australia won the toss on what looks like a very flat wicket, unlike the wickets used in the first three test matches. But yet, it was India who controlled the day’s proceeding with their disciplined bowling. They kept bowling tidy lines and lengths and gave nothing freebies to Aussie batters, but the gamble to take a second new ball towards the end didn’t pay off and handed over a slight advantage to visiting team.
Australia made a very solid start after deciding to bat first in a very crucial game; Aussies openers Head and Khawaja showed the proper technique to tackle the new ball; Indian bowlers made things easy for them with their wayward bowling in the first hour. They registered their second fifty-run opening stand inside the 13th over. Head was looking very dangerous, but he threw his wicket just after a drinks break (Head 32); Australia ended the first session on 75 for 2.
Tussle between bat & ball in second session
Skipper Steve Smith and Usman Khawaja continued to toil Indian bowlers in the afternoon session, but the Indian bowler showed very google discipline and didn’t let the Aussie batsman run away with the game; Steve smith also couldn’t score freely as he usually likes. Smith and Khawaja applied themselves well, but they could only manage to get 74 runs in the session without losing any wickets.
Second new ball gives Australia slight advantage
The start of the third session was very good for team India; Jadeja broke the 79-run partnership; he sent Smith back just after the tea break. There was a lapse in concentration of Smith; it was a straight ball from Jadeja as he tried to steer the ball to the offside, get an inside edge, and straight onto the stumps. Peter Handscomb was sent back by Shami’s Jaffa, and Australia reduced to 170 for 4.
Indian bowlers continued to keep the Aussie batsman in check for the rest of the session. Ashwin and Shami were the picks of the bowlers as the Indian 5-man bowling attack kept toiling relentlessly without giving a breather to the Australian batsman. They were at 199 for 4 when the second new ball became available.
Indian spinners were keeping the tab on run flow, but Indian captain Rohit Sharma took a gamble with the new ball, which didn’t go very well. Australia managed to score 54 runs in the last 9 overs. Flat deck, tired fast bowlers towards the end of the day, the plan backfired for the home team.
Green did all the damage, and Khawaja kept taking singles at the other end. He completed his magnificent hundred with his 15th boundary in the last over of the day. He became the first Australian to score a century on this tour and also became the first Aussie left-hander to score a test century in India in the last 12 tests & 13 years.
Crucial Day 2 coming
Australia will love to bat as long as possible on the second day; They will try to bat India out of the test match. While team India will try to break this dangerous partnership early in the day and clean up the Australian tail as early as possible. Because the pitch is going to get difficult for the batting as the match progresses. An exciting Day of test match cricket coming soon from Ahmedabad on March 10.
Political diplomacy in Ahmedabad on Day 1
The start of the fourth Test between India and Australia in the Border Gavaskar Trophy was a very special occasion for both cricketing nations. Indian Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi and his Australian counterpart Anthony Albanese attended the first day of the test match.
Various programs were arranged for the special occasion. Both Prime Ministers were felicitated by the BCCI. They met both teams ahead of the game and gave the test caps to their respective captains. Pm Modi and Pm Albanese took the lap of honors around the ground and greet the thousands of fans present at the Narendra Modi Stadium.
