Why Day 1 could be glass half empty for Australia and half full for India

Boxing Day Test: At 237 for 2, as they took a drinks break, Marnus Labuschagne was speaking happily to the broadcasters. There was every reason for that mood as he and Usman Khawaja had sneaked through the slipstream provided the dramatic Test debut of the teenager Sam Konstas, playing as if he strolled in from the beach, grabbed a bat, and went about walloping the Indians in a way that would never be forgotten a record crowd for a Test against India in Australia.
But just after the drinks break, came the mini Australian wobble. Eventually, despite a 52-run partnership between Steve Smith and Alex Carey, Australia ended the day on 311 for 6, letting slip the opportunity to grind India out of the game. It captured the state of the series so far: two below-par batting units finding a way to either implode or unable to finish the job they start. Australia are not in a particularly vulnerable state but on a pitch where only the new ball did something, Australia did not end the day well and allowed India a sniff.
Labuschagne charged out first ball after the break to heave Washington Sundar but couldn’t clear a leaping Virat Kohli at mid-on. Enter Jasprit Bumrah. He went around the stumps to Travis Head, Australia’s crisis-man facing a crisis-less situation for the first time in the series. It was also an angle of attack that Indians had puzzlingly almost abandoned after Perth. Head shouldered arms but heard the rattle of the off stump as the ball sneaked in. 240 for 4, and now things began to get interesting as Mitch Marsh hasn’t been amongst runs.
A series of kickers from back of length from Bumrah were troubling Marsh who was looking to defend, and when the batsman decided to go for a counter-attacking pull, he could only feather it behind to Rishabh Pant. It was 246 for 5 and officially a troublesome time for the hosts, but Steve Smith, looking far more assured than ever in the series, and the busybee Alex Carey made Indians wait and fret.
But at 299, Carey fell to the second new ball. Akash Deep, who had bowled his heart out on another luckless-day, had one leaping from back of length that brushed the gloves en route to Pant.
The day had started with the visual of Shubman Gill leaving the arena where rest of his team-mates were practising or milling around and trudging off to the dressing room. He was dropped from the team for the sake of “balance” and replaced Washington Sundar.
Rare assault
More strangeness awaited us as Bumrah finished his first spell that read 6-2-38-0 and was tonked for two sixes with the new ball. He had beaten Konstas four times in the first over and troubled him a few more times later, before the youngster decided it was time to play his card. A shimmy to the left and to the right and the audacious lapscoops came. Did he ever think that he might have looked silly had he been bowled, trying to do it?
“I guess it would have but I am fairly confident about that shot as I have worked really hard,” Konstas would say later. “Guess that’s the beauty of being young and probably naive!” He would echo the words of his captain Cummins from a day earlier who had talked about “young and naive” about his own debut as a 18-year old in a sensational Test debut in South Africa.
Cummins would end that Test match, where he grabbed a six-for and hit the tricky runs needed to win the game, sitting and talking with one of the bowlers he admired a lot, Dale Steyn. Meanwhile, Konstas found himself in a shoulder-barge incident with one of his favourite batsman, Virat Kohli. He took the classy high-road out saying it was an “accidental” bump from Kohli. “I was fiddling with my gloves and I think he accidentally bumped into me. That’s cricket. Happens.”
India’s Virat Kohli, talks to Australia’s Sam Konstas (second left) as Usman Khawaja (right) looks on during the first day of the fourth Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. (AP Photo)
He would also talk about how “surreal” the dream debut was. “Quite surreal. Biggest crowd I have ever played. I felt welcomed the boys too. I was disappointed I got out.” It wasn’t a surprise that a batsman who took such ‘risks’ that he necessarily doesn’t see as risks got out; it’s a surprise that he lasted that long without changing his game plan to shock the Indians.
He has every reason to be disappointed that he didn’t go on and get a hundred but it’s a few other teammates of his that should be disappointed as they have allowed the gate to be slightly ajar for India to gatecrash. On evidence, the new ball does something but apart from that it’s been relatively flat, at least on this opening day. The weather didn’t turn as oppressive as forecasted but the breeze still blew dry-heat into the arena. It’s expected to cool down from Thursday and it remains to be seen if that affects the movement in some way.
It was a day of goosebumps, sighs and relief. Firstly a record crowd of 87242 saw a plucky teenager live out a surreal dream, a moment made more surreal that it was the great Australian captain Mark Taylor, but a dour dogged opening batsman, who gave the baggy green to him. Once the crowd got over the goosebumps provided the kid, Australia made them sigh yielding wickets and thus providing relief to Indians who could have found themselves under the mat.

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