INDIA VS AUSTRALIA SECOND TEST - SCORECARD
A premature end to the day's play with rain playing spoilsport. India finishes day two firmly in front courtesy a magnificent hundred from skipper Ajinkya Rahane. His century stand with Ravindra Jadeja has taken India's lead to 82. With the ball starting to turn and the conditions still looking good for bowling, Australia will have a task at hand when they walk out to the middle on Monday. The first order of business will be to try and break this partnership and then wipe out the tail as cheaply as possible. That would be all fro our side, thanks for joining us.
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India 275/5 after 91 overs: Rahane brought up the 100-run partnership with a flashy cover drive off Hazlewood. India now starting to call the shots, thanks to that hard-fought hundred from Rahane and this counterattacking partnership. Nathan Lyon has been introduced into the attack inside eight overs of taking the new ball; sign of just how dominant India have been this session.
India 268/5 after 88 Overs: Rahane gets to his hundred with a cracking cut shot off Cummins. His 12th Test hundred and second at the MCG. His first ton as India captain. Take a bow, Rahane. A captain's knock indeed. Perhaps as good as his hundred at Lord's in 2014. India's lead is now 73.
India 256/5 after 85 Overs: Still no swing with the new ball. Rahane, meanwhile, has upped the ante. Starc goes short and wide; Rahane slices it over backward point for four. Jadeja, at the other end, has looked the part as a No. 7 batsman. Runs are coming thick and fast for India at the moment, a few frustrated faces in the Australian camp. Hazlewood finally got the new ball that was four overs old.
India 244/5 after 82 Overs : Mitch Starc takes the new ball for Australia. Pat Cummins shares it with him. Rahane gets a reprieve off Starc's bowling as Steve Smith drops one in the cordon. That makes it three dropped catches in this innings - one from Smith, Labuschagne and Paine each . More luck going India's way. Meanwhile, Rahane has played a delightful drive off Cummins for four. There has been no shape on that new ball, not yet anyway.
NEW BALL HAS BEEN TAKEN.
India 228/5 after 79 Overs: Green and Lyon have slipped in a few tight overs here. The new ball is just one over away. It will be the key. India's lead is 33. Rahane and Jadeja have to make sure they safely negotiate this next passage of play.
India 224/5 after 76 Overs: Ravindra Jadeja brings up the 50 partnership with a boundary and a single off Cam Green. The three frontline pacers have been given a breather by Tim Paine, presumably because the new ball will be available in four overs.
India 215/5 after 73 Overs: It is still very overcast in Melbourne. Twin changes after the break. Nathan Lyon replaces Mitch Starc and Cam Green is bowling in place of Josh Hazlewood.. The lead's building for India, slowly but steadily. In the meantie, Rahane has skipped down the track to Lyon and creamed a glorious through extra cover for four. Lovely use of the feet.
India 208/5 after 70 Overs : India have Lady Luck by their side. After Rahane collects a streaky boundary off Starc, Jadeja gets three for a mistimed cut shot which fell wide of Cameron Green at gully. The lead's now 13 . Good thing for Australia, the ball, despite being 70 overs old, is still moving off the pitch and in the air. The new ball is 10 overs away.
India 198/5 after 67 Overs : India have taken the lead in Melbourne. Starc and Hazlewood are bowling in tandem after the break. Meanwhile, there were signs of aggression from Jadeja, who played a couple of good looking pull shots off the quicks. Wonder if the plan for Jaddu is to up the ante while Rahane holds one end up.
India 192/5 after 64 Overs: Three balls remaining in Mitch Starc's over. Jadeja will be on strike. The new ball will be available after a little more than 16 overs. Jaddu picks up three off the final delivery.
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Rain held up play for a little while. Action will resume at 10:15 am. There's a very important session coming up. Rahane and Jadeja would try and get a lead of at least 70-80 runs if not more. There's still Ashwin to come after this. Umesh and Bumrah are no mugs with the bat. So, exciting session around the corner.
India 185/5 after 63 overs: Rahane scores a fifty off 111 deliveries, reaching the mark in style, flicking a low full toss from Starc down leg.
India 176/5 after 60 overs: Starc replaces Cummins and is looking to bowl a tad too full. One of those deliveries has been driven by Rahane; three runs off it. Green returns and is looking good as he goes on to test the different lengths on the pitch.
India 166/4 after 57 overs: Rahane nudges one past backward point and runs a couple; initially, looked like it had the legs to run down to the ropes. Paine sets a defensive field for Pant - this contest is surely heating up. And only moments later, Pant gets the hallowed gift of a charmed life - Green drops him, diving to his left at gully. Oh, that would've hurt! In the meantime, one of Rahane's many defensive pushes races down to the ropes. The 50-run stand is up in only 73 deliveries.
India 153/4 after 54 overs: Momentum swing?! Rishabh Pant justifying his inclusion - replacing Wriddhiman Saha - with a few back-to-back quality shots off Cummins. One of those has been pulled gloriously through mid-wicket. And another! He wasn't in complete control of that stroke but it still ends up running down to the fence at wide backward point. Rahane saunters down to have a chat with the Delhi batsman - maybe asking him to play safe? Lyon isn't spared as well as Pant sits back to slam a flamboyant cover drive.
India 135/4 after 51 overs: Rahane squeezes one between second slip and gully to steal a boundary off the bowling of Cummins. The dimensions of the MCG are such that you have to hit the ball really hard to make sure it trickles down to the ropes. Pant and Rahane get the ball to split the gaps on more than one occasion but only manage to run a couple. Time for a drinks break!
India 122/4 after 48 overs: Hazlewood bowls a menacing bouncer to Rahane and gives him the stare. The India captain, however, isn't entertained and alongside Pant adds five runs in the Lyon over. Hazlewood returns to bowl a maiden.
India 116/4 after 45 overs: There's a smattering of grass on the track and that is aiding Lyon a fair bit. Hazlewood, at the other end, bowls a no ball and Rahane only makes things worse by hammering a boundary off the very next. The skipper gets lucky a few balls later as he gets a top-edge to fall in no man's land. Oh no! Rahane seems to be in some sort of discomfort. The physio is out in the middle after the 44th to give the skipper a brief back massage. Meanwhile, Vihari hits a boundary to bring up the fifty-run stand.
India 102/3 after 42 overs: The visitor enters triple digits; it has been an uphill task to get to the second fifty. The batsmen continue to play with the turn on offer from Lyon. The trail, meanwhile, has come down to 93. Taking a substantial lead here will be invaluable for Rahane and Co.
India 93/3 after 39 overs: Hazlewood starts off proceedings post lunch. The ball's still carrying through even as there is a little bit of away movement from the right-hander. Lyon comes back to bowl his fourth and is extracting quite some turn off the surface. Rahane and Vihari avoid taking undue risks.
India 89/3 after 36 Overs: With less than 10 minutes to go for lunch, Nathan Lyon is introduced into the attack for the first time this morning. Starts by bowling a maiden. The partnership between Rahane and Vihari is 25 off 76 deliveries. Rahane has either blocked or left for the large part of his innings so far.
India 83/3 after 33 Overs: Starc is getting some late inswing. Hazlewood has replaced Starc just before the break. Run-scoring has been more difficult as the morning has progressed but Vihari and Rahane are hanging there tough.
India 80/3 after 30 Overs : Vihari got his first boundary courtesy a magnificent whip through mid-wicket, the timing on it was imperious. Rahane, at the other end, finally got off the mark after 17 deliveries. Mitchell Starc is into the attack. He replaces Cummins. Less than 30 minutes to go for lunch.
India 70/3 after 27 Overs: An extended spell for Cummins, who has helped Australia surge back into the match and put the spotlight on India's rejigged middle-order. Rahane is in at 4 and Vihari at 5. There's Pant, Jadeja and Ashwin to come after this. The Australian quicks have made life hard work on an overcast, warm day and Starc hasn't even bowled yet! Cummins this morning: 8-4-12-2 .
India 67/3 after 24 Overs: Two set batsmen are back in the hut. The morning looked like going India's way until Cummins got Gill and Pujara in quick succession. The world's No. 1 Test bowler for a reason, eh? McGrath, on air, reckons the Australians are now bowling a fraction fuller, hence the rewards.
India 59/1 after 21 Overs : Shane Warne, on air, feels Cummins and Hazlewood have been a fraction short today compared to the lengths they bowled in Adelaide. Meanwhile, Gill has collected another boundary off Cummins; a thick outside edge going between second slip and gully to the third man fence. First surprise of the morning - Cameron Green is first change of the morning. Another edge, this time off Pujara, falls short of Wade in the cordon.
India 53/1 after 18 Overs: There have been a few plays, misses and inside edges, but you have to give Gill and Pujara the points for getting through the first 30 minutes unscathed. Cummins opened up Pujara with a peach that held its line after the initial inward movement. Good for Pujara he didn't push at it.
India 50/1 after 15 Overs: Hazlewood is bowling from the other end. Gill got a second reprieve after Paine failed to hold on to a tough chance. A length ball starting outside off cut Gill in half, taking the inside edge en route to the keeper. Next ball, Hazlewood erred on the fuller side and Gill drove it handsomely past mid-on. An over later, another inside edge off Hazlewood flew past the keeper for four. Meanwhile, the 50 partnership is up between Pujara and Gill. Eventful first 20 minutes of play.
India 36/1 after 12 Overs: Pujara to take strike. Cummins with the ball. Two slips and a short leg. Tim Paine has straightaway reviewed a caught behind. Nothing on hotspot or snicko. Australia have lost a review. Paine was the only one who appealed confidently.
Overcast conditions in Melbourne. Out come the Australian players. Pujara and Gill strut out shortly after. They have a task at hand.
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Jasprit Bumrah and Ravichandran Ashwin took seven wickets between them to hand India the advantage on Day One of the second Test against Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Saturday. India bowled Australia out for 195 and was 36 for 1 in its first innings at stumps. Here's the full Day 1 report - READ
TOSS UPDATE : Australia won the toss and elected to bat first.
STAT ALERT
This is the 100th Test between Australia and India. Australia have won 43 and India 28. There has been just one tie and 27 draws. England is the only other team that has played more than 100 or more Tests against India.
Boxing Day Tests between India and Australia in Melbourne
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