WTC Final, IND vs AUS: India's resilient fightback falls short as Australia end Day 3 on a high
Green's incredible catch at gully brought an end to Rahane's fightback on Day 3 of the WTC Final between India and Australia.
FollowThe second day of the WTC Final between India and Australia witnessed several notable moments. Starting the day at a score of 151/5, with a trail of 318 runs, the Indian batsmen Ajinkya Rahane and Srikar Bharat aimed to withstand the challenging situation. However, Scott Boland had different plans as he quickly dismissed Bharat in the second delivery of the day.
Pat Cummins displayed an impressive spell, troubling Shardul Thakur with his accurate bowling. Despite facing intense pressure, Thakur showed courage and managed to survive Cummins' fiery spell. On the other hand, Rahane played a resilient inning, hitting a four and a six off Cummins and reaching his 26th Test match fifty.
Rahane received a couple of fortunate escapes during his remarkable knock, and Shardul also survived narrowly when Cummins overstepped before trapping him lbw. Rahane and Shardul stitched a brilliant 100-run partnership, frustrating the Australian bowlers and guiding India to lunch without further damage.
After lunch, the match took a huge turn when Cameron Green took an exceptional one-handed catch in the gully to dismiss Rahane for 89 runs. Cummins broke the seventh-wicket stand of 109 runs by removing Rahane, and credit was due to the excellent catch. Cummins then dismissed Umesh Yadav cheaply, but Mohammad Shami provided some entertainment alongside Thakur. T
Thakur showcased his batting skills by playing two beautiful drives and completing his fourth Test half-century. However, Green ended Thakur's innings at 51 runs, breaking the 23-run partnership for the ninth wicket and India was bowled out for 296 in 69.4 overs, conceding a substantial first-innings lead of 173 runs to Australia.
In Australia's second innings, Mohammed Siraj made an early impact by removing David Warner for just 1 run. Usman Khawaja cautiously batted alongside Marnus Labuschagne until the tea break. After the resumption, Khawaja, was dismissed by Umesh Yadav, caught by Bharat after nicking the ball.
Steven Smith came in with an attacking mindset and scored runs quickly. He formed a partnership of 62 runs with Labuschagne for the third wicket. Smith played aggressively, while Labuschagne adopted a more defensive approach. Ravindra Jadeja utilized the pitch effectively and deceived Smith with a wide delivery, resulting in a top-edge.
Travis Head fell victim to Siraj's short-ball strategy and Jadeja managed to dismiss both of Australia's first-innings centurions.
Towards the end of the day's play, Cameron Green (7* off 27) and Marnus Labuschagne (41* off 118) steadied the Australian innings. India's bowlers maintained their accuracy in the second innings, preventing the opposition from running away with the game.
