As the experienced Mohammed Shami began the proceedings for Team India in the opener, Siraj, while banking on the pressure forged by his senior, took little time to topple opener Khawaja in the first ball of the second over
Rahul Dravid (Pic Courtesy: AP)
The opening day witnessed a rough, intriguing battle between the world’s best two teams in what seemed only the beginning for a hotly-anticipated four-match Test Series between hosts India and Australia. As it appeared, a well-equipped bowling unit, spearheaded by Ravichandran ‘spin God’ Ashwin, was enough to hammer down the world’s best batting lineup.
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India’s stocks over the years in the pace and spin unit have skyrocketed, having fast evolved from once being regarded as slow-track burners to every-condition pros, Aussie openers Usman Khawaja and David Warner on Thursday little imagined how their presence on the pitch would last not more than an over, while the struggle against opposition’s chockful of aggression continued in full swing.
As the experienced Mohammed Shami began the proceedings for Team India in the opener, Mohammed Siraj, while banking on the pressure forged by his senior, took little time to topple opener Khawaja in the first ball of the second over.
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Siraj, zipping the ball through on the leg stump, trapped Khawaja in front of the stumps for 1. Much to India’s dismay, however, the umpire decided against the appeal. Later, a displeased Rohit Sharma chose to send the review upstairs challenging the original decision.
As the video replay board showed the ball pitching just in line and hitting the wickets, the excitement back from the dressing room knew no bounds. A usually silent head coach Rahul Dravid went wild as he celebrated Khawaja’s wicket animatedly. Furthermore, captain Sharma could also barely keep calm and went bonkers with the fall of the first wicket. Needless to say, it is going viral. WATCH the video below.
Gooood Morning 🔥
— Washington Sundar (@Sundarwashi5) February 9, 2023
🎥: @StarSportsIndia pic.twitter.com/bQP3yFEHa1
If this fiery start wasn’t enough, Shami struck in quick succession as he bagged the big fish of David Warner from the other end, leaving Australia reeling at 2-2, before Marnus Labuschagne and Steve Smith took matters into their own hands. It all boiled down to 177 in the first innings with comeback-man Ravindra Jadeja in his element and Ashwin looking to explode. The day ended with Sharma slamming an authoritative half-century after KL Rahul fell prey to an early dismissal as India reached 77 for 1 at stumps on day one of the opening Test.
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