Sara Tendulkar, daughter of legendary batsman Sachin Tendulkar, was seen in the stands on the first day of the third Test encounter between India and Australia at The Gabba in Brisbane on Saturday. Sara was cheering from the stands with former cricketers Zaheer Khan and Harbhajan Singh sitting on the seats behind her. However, there was not much play in the first session on the first day as heavy rain affected play, and forecasts suggest play over the next few days may be affected by rain and thunderstorms.
Sara Tendulkar is here to support the Indian team. pic.twitter.com/k7iUbTMsSG
— Ahmed said (@AhmedGT_) December 14, 2024
Australia’s openers, especially local hero Usman Khawaja, showed a lot of grit as they confidently negotiated Jasprit Bumrah’s opener to reach an unbeaten 28 against India.
Only 13.2 overs were allowed to be played in the first session as the weather forecast predicted more disruptions throughout the game.
Bumrah (0/8 in 6 overs) bowled his strongest opening spell of the series so far.
Despite overcast weather and ample bounce, he did not bowl too many wicket-taking deliveries in his six-over first spell and Mohammed Siraj (0/13 in four overs) was guilty of bowling short at times.
As for Bumrah, he bowled the ball correctly but there was little hint of the swing on offer and he was rarely able to square Khawaja (19 off 19, 47 balls) while returning the wicket. The lines were not very interesting and drifted towards the bridge more often.
Without many probing questions being asked, Australia moved into 19th place with no losses as proceedings were halted by persistent rain for the first 25 minutes. While Nathan McSweeney (4 for 3, 33 balls) defended well, Khawaja pulled Siraj to the boundary before the break and added one more after play resumed.
Siraj was removed after his first spell of 3 overs and Akash Deep (0/2 in 3.2 overs) looked good first and kept the ball in the off-stump channel with a stock delivery that allowed the batsman to get into it. In an uncomfortable position.
But where Australia won the session was the way Khawaja handled Bumrah. He defended well, dropping his bottom hand and trying to play as late as possible. The ball that went past Khawaja’s outside edge was not meant to be hit. Rather, he kept the bat close to his body and let the ball fly past the willows. He only bowled deliveries to his body. He knew that if he could manage Bumrah’s first spell, which usually lasted between six and eight overs, he could dominate the other bowlers.
The second rain was caused by sharper showers. Akash and especially Siraj started throwing the ball higher and using angles well in the second spell.
(including PTI input)
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