Match Report
Aus vs Ind (First Test): Day 4 – India Is Eyeing To Finish Their Long Winless Test Moment In Australia
By Sandy - Dec 9, 2018 2:39 pm
Views 54

Since January 2008 at Perth Test, India has never won a Test match on the Australian soil. However, it seems like the wait is going to end on Monday (December 10) when the hosts Australia and the visitors India will come to play on the day 5 of the Adelaide Test.

India
Indian cricket team

India started the day 4 of the Test match on their overnight second innings score 151/3 and the overnight unbeaten batsmen Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane had a very fine morning. They had an important 87-run partnership for the fourth wicket that led them to the good position in the game.

Pujara
Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane

The first innings centurion Pujara scored 71 runs off 204 balls (9 fours) before losing his wicket. Rahane also completed his half-century in 111 balls.

Rohit Sharma lost his wicket cheaply as he scored only run before Nathan Lyon dismissed him. The wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant played a cameo knock of 28 runs off 16 balls (4 fours and one sixes). Rahane’s innings ended on 70 runs off 147 balls (7 fours).

India lost their last four wickets for just four runs as the visitors were bowled out for 307 runs and set a 323-run target for Australia. Aussie off-spinner Nathan Lyon bagged six wickets in that innings as he finished with the bowling figure of 42-7-122-6.

Lyon
Nathan Lyon bagged six wickets

On the very second ball of the fourth innings, Australian opener Aaron Finch was trapped for lbw by the Indian pacer Ishant Sharma. Finch went for the review after umpire went against his favour and he was just saved after Ishant delivered a front-foot no-ball, otherwise it was going in favour of the visitors according to the ball-tracking.

However, Finch failed to utilise that opportunity as he was dismissed just 11 runs. The debutant opener Marcus Harris was caught behind after scoring 26 runs. Usman Khawaja and Peter Handscomb also lost their wickets quickly on just 8 and 14 runs respectively. Shaun Marsh remained unbeaten on 31 runs off 92 balls (3 fours) while Travis Head was not out on 11 runs off 37 balls (1 four) and they finished the day with the unbroken 20-run partnership for the fifth wicket as Australia was batting on 104/4.

Indian bowlers again showed their discipline against the hosts’ batting line-up. Ravichandran Ashwin (2/44) and Mohammed Shami (2/15) finished the day by taking two wickets each.

India
Indian cricket team

At the end of day 4, India needs six wickets to win their first Test in Australia since January 2008. Meanwhile, Australia needs to score 219 more runs to win this Test.

Some important stats of day 4 of Adelaide Test between Australia and India

  • Indian batsman Cheteshwar Pujara played two 50+ knocks in this Test match. Eighth Indian batsman to play two 50+ knocks in a Test match at Adelaide Oval (Adelaide).
  • India lost their last four wickets for just four runs. It is the third time on the Australian soil when India lost their last four wickets for just four runs in a Test innings. In further, India has also the Test innings record to lose their last four wickets for 0 (once) or 2 runs (thrice) during Australia tour.
  • During India’s second innings, Australian off-spinner Nathan Lyon had a bowling figure of 42-7-122-6. It is the second best bowling figure by an Australian spinner against India on the Australian soil. The record is 34.1-5-152-7 by Nathan Lyon at Adelaide in December 2014.
  • India has never won an opening game of the Test series in Australia.