WTC23 Final: Australia vs India | The Oval | June 7-11, 2023 | Day 2

[Justcrazy]

Jadeja has been in good form with the bat lately.

 

[Markhor]

Indian team is over the hill. Kohli/Rohit/Rahane/Pujara are all 35. Indian team simply does not want to move on from them.

Jadu comes ahead of Bharat. Shows how much faith Indian coach and captain has in Bharat's batting.

8 of 11 players in the India XI are over the age of 30 which is slightly worrying. Regardless of this WTC Final result, you'd think there'd be a selection cull and move to a younger generation.

And now Rahane's out.

 

[Champ_Pal]

Jadeja has been in good form with the bat lately.

Indian batting has been consistently bailed out by Jadeja, Ashwin and Axar in the past 2 years. This time India only has Jadeja.

 

[Markhor]

No-ball ! Let off for Rahane.

 

[Amjid Javed]

India once again depending on jadeja to bail them out. Aussies should be aiming for big 1st inns lead if they keep chipping away with wickets

 

[Zerotohero]

Lucky reprieve for rahane.Should make it count

 

[Visaal-E-Yaar]

Rihane to fall very soon...

 

[Zerotohero]

No hopes in Bharath and Thakur. May be Umesh shami can hit a couple of blows but that's all
Not more than 20- 30 among the lower order and tail

 

[Champ_Pal]

With Jaddu, India's hopes are gone.

 

[MenInG]

Good innings - another 100 pship could have done the job to try and make the game more competitive

 

[Champ_Pal]

Bharat is struggling against the pace of Starc. Might not have played this kind of bowling before.

 

[imshally81]

Stumps...

 

[Champ_Pal]

India could have opened with Axar and Aswin and they would have done the same or better than what Rohit/Pujara did.

This openers concept is overrated when Indian batsmen are playing overseas. No matter who plays at the top, the score card remains the same.

 

[OldWarHorse]

Bharat is so ordinary. His keeping is mediocre as well

 

[Champ_Pal]

Bharat will exit early tomorrow. He is not an international class batsman.

Hopefully Lord Thakur will score some useful runs.

 

[MenInG]

Australia's bowlers put in a thunderous performance to rip through the India top order on day two of the World Test Championship final at The Oval.

In an exhibition of why the Australian pace attack will bring a supreme threat to England's swashbuckling batters in the Ashes, India were reduced to 71-4.

Captain Pat Cummins removed opposite number Rohit Sharma, before Scott Boland, Cameron Green and Mitchell Starc all produced sensational deliveries.

India clung on through Ravindra Jadeja and Ajinkya Rahane, only for Jadeja to edge the off-spin of Nathan Lyon to slip for 48.

India closed on 151-5, still 318 behind the Australians, who were bowled out for 469 in their first innings.

That represented something of a fightback for India, who took the last seven Australia wickets for 108 runs.

Travis Head was out for 163 and Steve Smith 121 as Mohammed Siraj led the revival with 4-108.

Then came the awesome display from the Australian bowlers that has put them well on course to be crowned world champions.

Australia's twin goals are to win this final and claim an Ashes victory on English soil for the first time in 22 years.

In dominating India, they have shown why they pose such a formidable threat to England's Bazballers, who have won 11 of their past 13 Tests.

The heart of the Ashes intrigue is whether or not England's batters will be able to carry the fight to the Australian bowling attack. On this evidence, that will be an almighty challenge and an outstanding achievement if England can pull it off.

Yes, there is movement and some uneven bounce in the Oval pitch, but it still has to exploited. Whereas India were too often unable, Australia have been relentless, ruthless and venomous.

In one sense, a showpiece event like a world final should not be framed in the context of a Test series that is still more than a week away.

However, Australia have already done the bulk of the work to get their hands on the title and, in doing so, have further whetted the appetite for the Ashes.

BBC

 

[Champ_Pal]

Bharat is so ordinary. His keeping is mediocre as well

Playing him ahead of Kishan does not make any sense. Kishan may be a hack, but if he clicks, he will score a quick fire 50. I feel Kishan is also a better keeper than Bharat.

 

[Amjid Javed]

The over rates on 1st two days of this test have been disgraceful, even with early starts they aren't getting all overs in.

 

[Saj]

India needing to squeeze out at least another 200 runs or they are gone.

 

[OldWarHorse]

Playing him ahead of Kishan does not make any sense. Kishan may be a hack, but if he clicks, he will score a quick fire 50. I feel Kishan is also a better keeper than Bharat.

And an LHB could have been so much more useful.

 

[ask_analyse_act]

these guys come off from the mickey mouse league hitting sixers in 60m boundaries, and then to face pace in England... No way they gonna give an inch of fight to Aussies, would be a cake walk for them and will wrap it up in 3 days with an inns victory...

 

[MenInG]

The second day of the ICC World Test Championship 2023 Final at The Oval saw Australia follow a commanding batting display with a top-notch bowling effort. At the end of the day's play, India were placed at 151 for five in response to Australia's 469.

Beginning at the overnight total of 327 for three, the Australia pair of Steve Smith and Travis Head continued in the same belligerent tone that had exemplified yesterday’s final session. Smith struck back-to-back fours in the very first over to bring up his 31st Test hundred. With nine Test tons against India, Smith is now tied with Joe Root as the joint-highest century scorer against the Asian side in the format.

The duo looked like they were about to take another session away from India, scoring 34 from merely 36 balls at the start of play, before Head (163) nudged a short ball from Mohammed Siraj to the keeper. The pair’s stand of 285 runs, the most successful fourth-wicket stand at The Oval, had laid a strong platform for Australia to build on.

However, India’s pacers got their act after the first half hour and bowled probing lengths with much success. Mohammed Shami had Cameron Green caught at second slip, while Shardul Thakur bowled Smith (120) off the very first ball of his spell.

Mitchell Starc’s fallacious judgement cost Australia their seventh wicket in the 104th over when the left-hander decided to take on the sprightly Axar Patel at mid-off and ended up running himself out.

Despite losing four wickets in the session, the batting side went at nearly four an over and crossed the total of 400 in the process.

The first hour post-lunch saw the Australia tail wag and frustrate Rohit Sharma’s men. Alex Carey’s 48 helped the side finish at 469. Siraj was the pick of India’s bowlers with his four for 108. The pacer also achieved the landmark of 50 Test wickets when he bowled Nathan Lyon.

In response, India openers started with positive intent. Unleashing a mix of pulls and drives, the batters added 30 quick runs.

Australia struck back when they removed India skipper Rohit, who was trapped leg before by his opposite number, Pat Cummins. And in the very next over Shubman Gill left an incoming Scott Boland delivery, which crashed into his off stump. These two quick losses forced India towards a more watchful approach and they finished the session at 37 for two.

Hostile and incisive bowling from Australia ensured that there was little respite for the batters in the final session as well.

India's number three, Cheteshwar Pujara, fell in an identical fashion to Gill, leaving a Cameron Green delivery that came in. Another blow came at the score of 71, when Virat Kohli was bested by an accurate Mitchell Starc bouncer.

The fifth-wicket stand between comeback man Ajinkya Rahane (29 not out) and all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja (48) restored a semblance of order to the India innings. The 71-run partnership was the blend of Rahane's patience and Jadeja's assertiveness, but the stand was finally broken when a Nathan Lyon turner accounted for Jadeja.

Having lost half their side while still being 318 runs adrift of Australia's total, India will have a tall task going into the third day of the WTC final. The play will start at 10h30 local time on Friday morning.

 

[MenInG]

Highlights of Day 2

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[jattafridi]

I want atleast 145 lead

Than Australia should score 212

So the target 358 target india can u do it

 

[hitthestump]

Congratulations to Australia.

India and winning trophies aren't a combination that goes together.

Too busy signing cheques to remember how to play cricket.

 

[Ozeirk]

Pakistani bowling line up wouldn't have allowed Australia to rack up so many runs in these conditions. Bowlers from Pakistan are clearly superior to the likes of Shami, Siraj and Thakur.

 

[Rana]

Congratulations to Australia.

India and winning trophies aren't a combination that goes together.

Too busy signing cheques to remember how to play cricket.

Yes. They should learn how to win trophies from Pakistan?

 

[Stewie]

India is historically inept at handling English conditions. Their poor test record in England says it all. Maybe use your influence to hold all these finals in India till 3050 or something…

 

[YousafTheBeast]

Only way India can save this game is if their fans join the Just Stop Oil protest.

Don’t forget to cover the back up pitches on the sides.

 

[Aman]

Sucks SA or England didn't qualify, would have been a better watch for neutrals.

 

[Gilly]

Sucks SA or England didn't qualify, would have been a better watch for neutrals.

Yeah would be much better if you had weaker teams that cant play such high quality cricket.

 

[Aman]

Yeah would be much better if you had weaker teams that cant play such high quality cricket.

Nah, I meant Aus vs SA/England would have been a better watch in these conditions.

India have folded meekly so far and doesn't look like they're going to put up a fight.

 

[Ab Fan]

I want atleast 145 lead

Than Australia should score 212

So the target 358 target india can u do it

India will be bowled out in first hour tomorrow. KS Bharat and Rahane have barely survived on a bright sunny day and tomorrow in the morning, there will be some assistance for their pacers. These guys won't survive and are followed by tail.

Lead will be close to 275 runs.

 

[Gilly]

Nah, I meant Aus vs SA/England would have been a better watch in these conditions.

India have folded meekly so far and doesn't look like they're going to put up a fight.

Australia beat SA by an innings and 182 runs in these conditions in December last year.

 

[Champ_Pal]

Only way India can save this game is if their fans join the Just Stop Oil protest.

Don’t forget to cover the back up pitches on the sides.

Only way India can save this is if they shift the venue to Eden Gardens and allow a super sub for Umesh Yadav(Ashwin).