Kohli, who appeared to be in complete control, was left with nothing when his backup Ajinkya Rahane retired after calling for a single and it happened just before the second new ball was taken.
SCORE: India vs Australia, Test 1
From a comfortable 188 for 3, India fell to 206 for 6 when Rahane and Hanuma Vihari (16) found the rhythm and swing generated by the pink ball under the lights to be too hot to handle.
Ravichandran ashwin (15 batting) and Wriddhiman saha (9 batting) cut the last overs and also got some runs.
Stumps on day 1 of the first test. # TeamIndia 233/6 Scorecard – https://t.co/dBLRRBSJrx #AUSvIND https://t.co/T3mHk0n0in
– BCCI (@BCCI) 1608205795000
In conditions that can’t exactly be called batting friendly, Kohli combined the right amount of caution and aggression in his 180-ball innings, showing that he is a few light-years ahead of his teammates when it comes to quality hitting.
Yes Cheteshwar Pujara (43 of 160 balls) he let the pitchers dictate the terms with an ultra-defensive approach, his patron gave the opposition the respect it deserved but also, from time to time, played those shots to score a point.
His 88-run association with Rahane (42 of 91 balls) during the final session nearly put India on balance, but luck tipped once Kohli returned to the pavilion.
Rahane was soon attacked with the second new ball by Mitchell starc (2/49), easily the best bowler in action.
The blow will undoubtedly be one of the Indian captain’s favorites, as he hit three types of pull-shots to the pacemakers: two from Starc and one from Josh Hazlewood.
One of Starc’s pulls was a check shot for which he simply rolled his wrists toward the ball to the limit of the square leg.
Then there was one in front of Hazlewood where he again rolled his wrists but the ball went to the front of the square.
Another jerk was where he got under the ball and slammed it against the half-gate fence. There was a classic cover campaign that brought its half century.
Previously, Pujara’s ultra-defensive approach became its own undoing, as India literally crawled through the first two sessions.
Pujara was so focused on blocking anything and everything for most of his innings that a 68-run position for the third wicket with Kohli was unable to release the pressure before the second break of the night.
It’s not often that you find a hitter taking 148 balls to mark a limit and it turned into a battle of attrition between Pujara and star spinner Nathan Lyon (1/68 in 21 overs) during the post-dinner session.
It was a riveting hour of test cricket, a throwback to the good old days when batsmen released their front foot with a big step forward and used their pads as the first line of defense.
He hit Lyon through a couple of limits trying to break the shackles, but then came a classic off-break that had both spin and rebound and bat-pad outfielder Marnus Labuschagne, in leg-gully, lunged forward to catch him easily. .
While the art of defensive hitting was a fantastic advertisement for high-quality test cricket, there is no denying that Pujara’s dogged approach had Kohli also entered his shell before he and Rahane showed much intention in the final session .
When Pujara used more pads against Lyon, Kohli played conventional forward defense, introducing his bat first.
When an opportunity presented itself, he hit Lyon’s head to mark a boundary.
In the morning, the poor technique of Prithvi Shaw (0) was again exposed by Starc while Mayank Agarwal (17) received a beauty from Pat Cummins.
Starc’s Australian trio (2/49 in 19 overs), Josh Hazlewood (1/47 in 20 overs) and Pat Cummins (1/42 in 19 overs) set a very stable line that comprised mainly fuller deliveries.
At first, it was another disappointing mode of firing for Shaw, who, according to many, was a rather surprising pick over a fit Shubman Gill.
Starc maintained a full delivery, which formed slightly, and the starter, having faced a delivery, went for expansive momentum, playing away from his body only to drag him back to the stumps.
Agarwal was a bit adventurous when he found the first Indian boundary with a Hazlewood cover. An uppish square drive in front of Starc gave him a second.
But Cummins produced one that was fast and went off the track and Agarwal was outpaced for pace as reps showed he couldn’t even land on his front foot.
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