Adelaide: Mitchell Starc's impressive six-wicket haul enabled Australia to overcome brief resistance from Indian players KL Rahul, Shubman Gill, and Nitish Kumar Reddy, as the visitors were bowled out for 180 by the conclusion of the second session on the first day of the second Test at Adelaide Oval on Friday.
At the end of the second session, India finished their innings at 180 runs, with Nitish scoring the highest at 42. Starc's remarkable figures of 6 for 48 further enhanced his already impressive record in pink-ball Tests.
India resumed the second session at 81 for 4, with Rishabh Pant (4*) and captain Rohit Sharma (1*) at the crease.
The Indian captain faced challenges against the Australian bowling attack and was dismissed leg-before-wicket by Scott Boland after a laborious innings of three runs off 23 balls, leaving India at 87 for 5 in 25.5 overs.
Pant was joined by Nitish Kumar Reddy, who had previously scored 41 and 38* in the Perth Test, impressing many with his aggressive batting style.
India crossed the 100-run threshold in 30.4 overs, aided by a well-placed boundary from Nitish towards mid-off. In the 33rd over, Pant was dismissed by captain Pat Cummins for 21 runs off 35 balls, unable to cope with the excessive bounce, leading to a catch by Marnus Labuschagne at wide gully. India was then at 109 for 6 in 32.5 overs.
Ravichandran Ashwin stepped in next, aiming to apply pressure on the Australian bowlers with a few boundaries, providing valuable support to Nitish. Unfortunately, he was dismissed lbw by Starc with a well-executed delivery, scoring 22 runs off 22 balls, including three fours. At this point, India found themselves at 141/7 in 38.2 overs. Just three balls later, Starc secured his five-wicket haul by dismissing Harshit Rana for a duck, leaving India at 141/8 in 38.5 overs.
Nitish, however, added some crucial runs for India, boldly attacking Boland by hitting two sixes and a four. This aggressive approach unsettled Boland's rhythm, resulting in two no-balls during the over, which yielded 21 runs.
Despite his efforts, Nitish's resistance was short-lived as Cummins dismissed Bumrah for a duck, and shortly after, Nitish fell to Starc, scoring 42 runs off 54 balls, with three fours and three sixes. India was ultimately all out for 180 in 44.1 overs.
Starc's impressive figures of 6/48 in 14.1 overs further cemented his reputation as one of the finest pink-ball Test bowlers, marking his first five-wicket haul against India in Tests and his fourth in day-night matches, the highest by any bowler. Cummins and Boland each contributed with two wickets.
At the Tea break, India stood at 82/4, with Rishabh Pant (4*) and captain Rohit Sharma (1*) remaining unbeaten.
After choosing to bat first, India experienced a dismal start as opener Yashasvi Jaiswal was dismissed leg-before-wicket on the very first ball of the innings, leaving the score at 0/1.
Following this, Shubman Gill and KL Rahul took to the crease, tasked with negotiating the new pink ball. Returning from a thumb injury, Gill quickly signaled his aggressive intent by striking two elegant boundaries off Mitchell Starc, who had just claimed Jaiswal's wicket.
Gill was effectively targeting Starc, managing to score a few boundaries off him. In the eighth over, Rahul was dismissed by wicketkeeper Alex Carey off a delivery from Scott Boland, but the crowd erupted in joy as it was ruled a no ball.
After the first ten overs, India stood at 30/1, with Gill on 19* and KL on 9*.
Rahul, who had been in excellent form during the Perth Test, displayed his skills to the Adelaide audience with some impressive drives, including two consecutive boundaries against Australian captain Pat Cummins in the 15th over, bringing India to the 50-run mark in 14.5 overs. KL (26*) and Gill (25*) were navigating the pace attack of Cummins, Boland, and Starc with composure, capitalizing on any loose deliveries with powerful drives.
Starc ended KL's innings with a superb catch by Nathan McSweeney at gully. KL scored 37 runs off 64 balls, hitting six fours, leaving India at 69/2 in 18.4 overs.
Virat Kohli was also looking promising but fell to a slip catch by Steve Smith, dismissed by Starc for just seven runs. India’s score was now 77/3 in 20.1 overs.
India's struggles continued as Gill was trapped lbw by Boland for 31 runs off 51 balls, which included five fours. The score was now 81/4 in 21.1 overs.
At the end of the session, Rishabh and Rohit remained at the crease.
Brief Scores: India: 180 (Nitish Kumar Reddy 42, KL Rahul 37, Mitchell Starc 6/48) vs Australia.
