Day 3 report – India attain total command after tons from Kohli and Jaiswal

Australia vs India, First Test, Scorecard

India seized further control of the opening Border-Gavaskar Test at Perth on Day 3, setting up a mammoth total of 534 for Australia before Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj delivered early blows with the ball.

Resuming their second innings at 172, Yashasvi Jaiswal spearheaded the charge with a brilliant 161*,* while Virat Kohli was back to his run-scoring best as he mounted his 30th Test ton, his first in Australia since 2018 - coincidentally at the same venue.

Kohli, joined in the middle by debutant Nitish Kumar Reddy in the middle, shifted gears later in the day to help the visitors cross the 500-run lead before the bowlers took over.

Stand-in captain Jasprit Bumrah managed to trap Nathan McSweeney LBW in the first over of Australia's chase while his opposite number Pat Cummins, who arrived as a nightwatchman, only lasted eight deliveries before nicking one behind to Virat Kohli.

The final ball of the day saw Bumrah claim Marnus Labuschagne as Australia finished with only 12 runs on the board at the loss of three wickets.

Kohli's commanding knock

After Australia managed to remove KL Rahul and Devdutt Padikkal, Kohli forged a stand alongside Yashasvi Jaiswal before the latter was finally dismissed after his marathon outing of 161 off 297 deliveries.

Kohli then glued himself in the middle as he went on to score his seventh Test hundred in the country - most by an Indian batter in Australia.

The talisman, who had also scored a ton at this venue back in 2018, produced some stunning shots during his stay in the middle - including a picture-perfect upper cut for six over the third man boundary and his textbook cover drive for four.

He brought up the big milestone with a flashy sweep shot off Marnus Labuschagne as India finally decared their innings at 487/6 and gave the pacers some time to inflict damage upon the Australian top-order.

Australia bounce back

Earlier, Devdutt Padikkal (25) had provided solid support heading into Lunch, with his second-wicket partnership of 74 alongside Jaiswal further strengthening India's position.

Australia though made a strong comeback after the break, picking up four wickets in quick succession. Josh Hazlewood struck with the first ball after Lunch, drawing an outside edge from Padikkal's bat that was safely taken by Steve Smith in the cordon.

Jaiswal, who had added 38 runs with Virat Kohli and crossed the 150 milestone, couldn't capitalise on a wide delivery from Mitchell Marsh, hitting it straight into the hands of Smith at point.

The procession of wickets continued with Rishabh Pant looking to attack Nathan Lyon, only to be deceived for a stumping. Pat Cummins then trapped Dhruv Jurel leg before wicket in the very next over as India went from 313/2 to 321/5.

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Jaiswal sets the tone early

In his debut match on Australian soil, Yashasvi Jaiswal proved his mettle with a composed century in the second innings.

He brought up the milestone in style, executing an upper cut off Hazlewood that cleared the boundary and landed on the cushion for a six.

However, soon after, Australia finally found some relief when Mitchell Starc ended India's resilient 201-run opening stand, dismissing Rahul for a well-made 77.

Following the breakthrough, Padikkal joined Jaiswal at the crease, and together, the two southpaws kept the scoreboard ticking with boundaries flowing at regular intervals.

In the four overs with the new ball, India looked comfortable against Hazlewood and Mitchell Starc, although the Australian duo were guilty of straying in their lines and lengths as they headed into Lunch.