Day 2 at Dharamsala was another good, absorbing day of Test cricket. The intensity never dropped and where it takes us to is India 52 behind Australia with four first-innings wickets left.
Lokesh Rahul and Cheteshwar Pujara seemed to have done their bit but Pat Cummins sent Rahul back after he looked to be a tad rattled with his lost focus.
Pujara fell immediately after tea and then Nathan Lyon ran through the middle-order with a four-wicket haul.
India’s issue was they did not have batsmen who converted their 50s into a century. Scores of 60, 57 and 46 for them.
Lyon was the toast for Australia again and he was coming into the game with a finger injury.
To be frank, before the tea break, there seemed nothing in the pitch for him but in the third session, he made it happen. Bounce, turn and made it tougher for the batsmen.
The series, locked at 1-1, remains in the balance. Australia would be in a far better position if not for two dropped catches from Matt Renshaw, the latter a dolly that popped out of his hands in the fourth last over of the day.
Wriddhiman Saha, reprieved by Renshaw on nine, was unbeaten on 10 at stumps alongside Ravindra Jadeja (16 not out).
qwetzen
Guest
Matthew H said: "Thought the fields set were better yesterday." It's difficult to judge from the tv because they never seem to show a long shot, but I thought the opposite. Even on the medium camera shots there were acres of unguarded infield space, especially to the spinners. Plus some 'infielders' were in no mans land; too deep to stop the single, but not deep enough to be boundary riders. India have set *much* better fields to the spinners than Smith has, the number of well struck deliveries that have gone gone straight to Indian fielders for no run has been extraordinary. On the plus side for the Oz brains trust though... They've done a terrific job countering what were the worlds' #1 ranked batter & bowler. There can't have been many series where both have been knocked off the top spot. Tv volume is now one level up from Mute when Clarke is commentating. And of course; The next session is the most important etc etc Dharamarsala gets my vote as the most picturesque Test venue on the planet. Would like to see what it looks like in winter. The only problem with its proximity to the mystical mountains is that this appears to stimulate Hayden to even greater lengths of gibberish about Zen and the Art of Batting than usual.
Matthew H
Guest
Best test match of the series so far. Lets see what happens with the rest of this innings now. Thought the fields set were better yesterday.
qwetzen
Guest
Brilliant stuff from Lyon. Now if only he could get some support from his fellow spinner, whose name escapes me, Oz will be right back in this. Or if, not wickets from whatsisname, then at least if he could keep it tight as Lyon has been.