IND vs AUS: 1st Test – Ashwin-Jadeja complete India’s emphatic victory

The third day of the opening Test match of the Border Gavaskar Series in Nagpur moved at a swift pace courtesy of the Indian spinners. The home side registered an emphatic victory after wrapping up the Australian innings without any fuss. The day started with India losing Ravindra Jadeja in the first hour of play. However, the Indians continued on their merry way thanks to a handy partnership between Axar Patel and Mohammed Shami. 

Shami, who flayed three sixes in an entertaining knock, became Todd Murphy’s seventh wicket, the third-best figures for an Aussie on Test debut. Meanwhile, Axar Patel missed out on a deserving century by 16 runs after he was cleaned up by Pat Cummins.

India posted a handsome total of 400 runs in the first innings, registering a massive lead of 223 runs. The visitors, who were up against it after conceding such a resounding lead, made a shaky start after losing Usman Khawaja in the second of the second innings. The Australian innings went into a tailspin pretty quickly, with the Indian spinners all over the visitors. Ashwin’s five-for coupled with Jadeja and Shami’s brace bundled out the Aussies for a paltry 91 runs in the second innings.

Here are some of the talking points from the game:

Ravichandran Ashwin special in Nagpur

Ravindra Jadeja grabbed the plaudits in the first innings of the match, and it was the turn of the Indian off-spinner, Ravichandran Ashwin, to pile the pressure on the Aussies in their second innings. The veteran spinner was relentless from the get-go, dismissing Usman Khawaja in his very first over of the innings. The visitors were clueless against the champion bowler as Ashwin grabbed his 31st five-wicket haul in Test cricket to make a mockery of the Australian batting line-up.

Australia’s dreadful record in India continues

Pat Cummins’ Australia might be the top-ranked Test side in the world, but they were made to look ordinary on the third day of the first Test. The Australian top-order batters were unable to cope with the pressure, succumbing to an embarrassing defeat in the Test series opener. Australia’s last series victory on Indian soil came in 2004 and going by the result of the first Test, it doesn’t seem like coming anytime soon.

The lone warrior

Australia got off to the worst start possible in the Border Gavaskar Trophy after a thumping defeat in Nagpur. It was another nightmare for the Australian batters in the second innings which contributed to India’s terrific victory. However, there was some positive for the Aussies, the performance of debutant Todd Murphy. The 22-year-old overshadowed his senior bowling partner Nathan Lyon after recording a seven-wicket haul in his first Test innings. The youngster, who featured in just a handful of first-class games before his Test debut, has all the makings of a future superstar for the visitors.