On the back of the horror show of Adelaide, India bounced back to defeat Australia at MCG in the second Test of the series by 8 wickets, riding on Rahane’s captain knock and collective bowling efforts.
Detailed Match Report
Day 1 (AUS 195, Ind 35/1)
India made four changes in the squad and two players, Shubman Gill and Mohammed Siraj made their Test debut. Indian bowlers continued their top game by picking three early wickets on 38, including the big wicket of Steve Smith. Labuschagne and Wade constructed Aussie innings and put 86 runs for the 4th wicket. The middle couldn’t survive this time and India bowled them out on 195. Siraj bagged two on his Test debut and Bumrah picked four wickets. Ashwin dominated with his spin one more time and scalped three wickets.
India lost Mayank Agarwal early but Shubman Gill and Pujara survived the tricky phase of the final hour. Gill played some fine shots and remained not out on 28.
Day 2 (Ind 277/5)
The second day was completely dominated by the Indian side. Australia picked Pujara early and Gill scored 45 in his maiden Test innings. Hanuma Vihari looked better but couldn’t convert this start into big. Pant joined Rahane and his intent was aggressive. With this short partnership, India got quick runs. Pant got out on 29 and Rahane completed his half-century. In the final session, India avoided any big blow. Rahane and Jadeja both took the game away from the hosts. Before the final over, Rahane completed his 12th Test ton, second at MCG. India finished the second day on 277.
Day 3 (Ind 326, Aus 133/6)
Rahane got run out after scoring a terrific 112 and Australia ended the 121-runs partnership between Jadeja and Rahane. Jadeja completed his half-century but India couldn’t add enough runs on board and bowled out on 326. With the lead of 131 runs, India had good control on the game.
Australia’s poor batting continued in the 2nd innings and they lost Burns and Labuschagne early. Bumrah got Steve Smith in single-digits to put India on the driver’s seat. Australia made themselves out of the competition after losing three successive wickets in the margin of just one run. With the wickets of Wade, Travis Head, and Tim Paine, Australia lost six on 99. Cameron Green and Pat Cummins avoided any blow in the final half an hour. Australia finished the day on 133/6 with 2 runs lead.
Day 4 (Aus 200, Ind 70/2)
The match was heading to the conclusion on the fourth day. Cummins and Green added 57 runs for the 7th wicket. Green scored crucial 45 runs and Cummins contributed 22. India took the new ball and wrapped up the Australian innings by bowling them out on 200. Siraj bagged three wickets to finish the maiden Test with five wickets. Bumrah, Ashwin, and Jadeja picked two wickets each.
Chasing 70 odd runs, India lost Mayank Agarwal and Pujara on single digits. India were struggling at 19/2 and with Adelaide in mind, it scared Indian fans. Rahane and Gill held the nerves and comprehensively crossed the line. The series is now leveled at 1-1 and the Third test of the series will start from January 07 at SCG.
Star Performer of the Match
Ajinkya Rahane is our star performer of the match. The stand-in captain had huge pressure before this match. With Adelaide’s disaster in mind and in the absense of Kohli and Shami, he had the responsibility to lead the side. He scored his 12th Test hundred under pressure and helped to get 131 runs lead in the first innings. In the 2nd innings, he also contributed vital runs to seal the game for India.
5 impactful players of the match
Ajinkya Rahane 112 & 27*
Jasprit Bumrah 56/4 & 54/2
R Jadeja 57 & 15/1, 28/2
R Ashwin 35/3 & 71/2
Mohammed Siraj 40/2 & 37/3
