Batters botch up again; India 51/4 at end of rain-marred day

Brisbane, Dec 16: The Indian batters' inability to grind it out against a relentless Australian pace attack in testing conditions left the team precariously placed at 51 for four at the end of a rain-marred day three of the third Test here on Monday.

On a stop-start day, India bowled out Australia for 445 in their first innings, the hosts adding 40 runs to their overnight total, as the peerless Jasprit Bumrah continued to do the heavy lifting to finish with excellent figures of 6/76.

Alex Carey chipped in with an entertaining 70 off 88 balls after contrasting hundreds by Steve Smith and Travis Head on the second day laid the foundation for a total which looked more than enough just 14 overs into the Indian first innings.

With the exception of the gutsy KL Rahul (33 batting), who was willing to hang in there, none of the Indian top-order batters showed the stomach to fight.

Playing the red Kookaburra has become tougher since they changed their ball in 2020 by adding extra lacquer on a reinforced seam, making it firmer and ensuring more movement off the pitch.

Under the circumstances, the Indians needed to be patient and play out the first 25-30 overs when bowlers of the calibre of Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood were in operation.

But the visiting top-order batters did not do what was required of them. The likes of Virat Kohli once again fell to deliveries in the channel just outside the off-stump.

There is no doubt that the conditions were challenging but the Indian batters could have taken a leaf out of Smith's book as he initially negotiated testing spells of fast bowling from Akash Deep and Bumrah on way to a drought-breaking hundred.

After Australia racked in nearly 450 runs, left-arm pacer Starc struck twice and Josh Hazlewood once as the two teams took an early lunch with the visitors reeling at 22 for three.

Pat Cummins got the big wicket of Rishabh Pant in the second session to make matters worse for the Indians.

Returning to the middle after the lunch break, Rahul and Pant faced some hostile fast bowling from the duo of Starc and Hazlewood before heavy showers interrupted the proceedings, one of the many on the day.

Cummins kept three slips and a gully for Pant, as opposed to the four men in the slip cordon, and a gully for Rahul, when Hazlewood was operating.

Starc had three slips, and two gullies when he had the red cherry in his hand.

The only fielder in front of the wicket during that phase of play in the second session was the man stationed at mid-off, reflecting the Australian bowlers' dominance.

Starc removed Yashasvi Jaiswal in the second ball of the India innings and then dismissed Shubman Gill before Hazlewood accounted for Kohli as the visitors once again stared down the barrel after their failures in Adelaide.

Jaiswal was out caught by Mitchell Marsh at short mid-wicket while he tried to clip a Starc half-volley off his pads.

Gill was sent back when Marsh pulled off a brilliant catch in the slip cordon off the bowling of Starc after the India number three played away from the body.

Kohli was dismissed in what has now become a familiar scene as he once again chased a length delivery outside off before nicking it to Alex Carey.