R Ashwin picked up three wickets in the second session to give India some respite after Usman Khawaja and Cameron Green put on a mammoth 208-run stand.
Green, who started the day on 49 was fluent throughout even as India attempted to keep things tight on a flat pitch. He managed to cash in whenever India erred in their lengths, picking up 18 boundaries in total, enroute to a maiden Test century.
At the other end, Khawaja did little to change his methods and continued to bat serenely, barely showing discomfort against any bowler. The duo had batted through the first session of the day unscathed, and stayed together for 378 balls in total to grind India down.
However, just as Green was about to up the ante in the second session, starting off with well timed drives, he fell gloving a sweep against Ashwin which was caught well by KS Bharat down the legside. Ashwin topped up that breakthrough by dismissing Alex Carey for the fifth time in the series. With a tossed up ball, he lured Carey to play a big shot and had him caught at short third man for a duck. The inspired spell continued as he had Mitchell Starc caught at short leg with one sliding on. In the space of five overs, Australia lost three for nine to stymie a lot of the good work that had been done earlier.
However, despite the slip-ups at the other end, Khawaja went about unfazed in occupying the crease and became the first overseas batter in 13 years to bat 400 balls in an innings in India. His march towards a double hundred continued into the Tea break, having seen through five sessions, playing just the way he did right through the innings.
It helped Australia when Green partnered Khawaja earlier in the day. India’s ploy to bowl dry was kept up at one end right through but Umesh Yadav’s profligacy proved to be a deterrent to their overall strategy.
Despite his waywardness, Rohit Sharma persisted with Umesh over a 6-over spell that ended up going for 37 runs in the session, adding the punch to Australia’s solidity. Green was the beneficiary of many of these freebies and he accepted them with glee. The unbeaten 177-run stand left India searching for answers as Australia’s grind was near perfect once again.
Green’s fortune saw him get into the nineties with an edged boundary and got him a well-deserved ton in the second session before Ashwin struck some vital blows.
Brief Scores: Australia 409/7 (Usman Khawaja 180*, Cameron Green 114; R Ashwin 4-83) vs India
