When the Test captain of India, Rohit Sharma, decided to bowl first under overcast conditions during the third Test of the Border Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2024-25 at the Gabba in Brisbane, the decision attracted so much criticism as questions were raised over the decision on a surface which was expected to get fast as the game would progress.
India couldn’t do much with the new ball in the 13.2 overs, which was possible on the opening day due to persistent rain, as both the Australian openers, Usman Khawaja and Nathan McSweeney, kept on pulling the short balls around the park. Jasprit Bumrah was decent with the new ball, while Akash Deep wasn’t up to the mark and went with a wide line to the fresh openers, who kept on leaving the balls outside the off-stump.
But the Ahmedabad-born, as he always does, brought India back into the game by dismissing both the overnight openers. Khawaja was set up beautifully by the 31-year-old, who, in the end, got a slight outside edge into the hands of the wicket-keeper. McSweeney also had the same fate, while Marnus Labuschagne chased a wide delivery from Nitish Reddy to find the dolly of Virat Kohli at slip.
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Steve Smith, who hasn’t scored a Test century since the Lord’s Test in the Ashes 2023, was under a bit of pressure, especially on the back of his low scores in the series at the Optus Stadium and Adelaide Oval. He, however, got the presence of Travis Head, who was fresh from his 140-run knock in the previous day-night affair.
Tanveer Ahmed makes fun of India’s bowling department in Brisbane
The left-arm batter from South Australia nailed the pacers of India from the start. Suddenly, the field opened up, and it made it easier for Smith to gather those easy singles and doubles. Ravindra Jadeja was introduced into the attack but he couldn’t make much difference with an all-out field, as Head kept on nailing the boundaries.
Mohammad Siraj, the second leading wicket-taker for India in the series, struggled with his hamstring before facing another cramp, making it more hard for the visiting bowling department. Soon, the left-handed middle-order batter smashed his third Test century against the blue brigade, as he now has collected over 1200 runs across formats against this opponent since the start of 2023.
Smith also started to get his rhythm back and found the mojo. He drove the ball for a few boundaries and ended the century drought with his 33rd in the format, going past for the former captain of the side, Steve Waugh. The right-handed batter now stands second for the country in the list, just behind Ricky Ponting, who has 41 centuries in Tests on his name.
The former Pakistan fast bowler, Tanveer Ahmed, has mocked the bowling department of the visiting side.
“Jaise dhobe kaprey dhota ha dandey say waise dhoya ha in dono ney Indian bowler’s ko, not bumrah other bowler’s.” The former seamer for the Green Brigade wrote on his ‘X’ handle (previously known as Twitter).
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The twin centuries and another 70-run contribution from Alex Carey in the lower order saw the home side finishing on 445 in the innings. The nightmare continued for India, as they lost their inform opening batter, Yashasvi Jaiswal, on the second ball of their batting, while Shubman Gill chased the seventh stump ball to the gully fielder.
Virat Kohli added another feather to his dismissals on driving the fifth stump balls as India lost four wickets for 44 runs and now expects the rain to help them in drawing the vital contest.