Australia crush India by 333 runs in 1st Test to take 1-0 lead

Australia recorded a crushing 333 run-win over India on Saturday in the first Test in Pune and took a 1-0 lead in the series. After setting India a daunting target of 441 to win, Australia bowled out Virat Kohli’s men for only 107.

Steven Smith lit up the morning session for Australia, scoring a brilliant 109 to swell Australia’s lead. His team were finally dismissed for 285 but by then, they had already set a daunting target for India.

India were never in the contest and it was their first innings’ wrecker-in-chief who dismantled them. Steve O’Keefe, who took a six-wicket haul in the first innings, took identical figures of 6/35 in the second innings as well to finish with match figures of 12/70. This was Australia’s first win in India in 13 years and it came with the team not being give much of a chance against the world’s No. 1 Test team.

Here are the live updates:

Here’s how the day turned out:

3.09 pm: Only second time after he’s taken over full-time captaincy that Kohli is in the losing captain’s position.

“I’ll take it on my chin. They bowled really well, had men around the bat. Difficult to come back in a Test match after having such poor sessions. Good to see Umesh Yadav’s performance”.

A delighted Steven Smith has come out.

“Knew it would be hard work. Proud of the boys. The guys had really good plans in place. 260 was a good first innings total. We’ve got a well-rounded squad. Incredible performance from O’Keefe. He brought his length back and looked like getting a wicket every ball. He’s worked incredibly hard to get here. This hundred is right up there. I got a bit of a luck... but to get a 100 in the second innings, was very happy.”

The Player of the Match award goes to Steve O’Keefe for figures of 12/70 (best match figures by an Australian bowler in India)

“Great feeling. First innings was a bit of a blur. Good to go 1-0 up, but lots of hard work to do. Enjoyed my experience in Pune...sundar Pune....look forward to Bangalore.”

2.49 pm: Won’t be reached. Lyon ends it. India bowled out for 107. They lose by 333 runs.

Great performance from Australia. Steve Smith and Steve O’Keefe were brilliant but this was a performance built of brilliant support acts. There was Mitchell Starc (with both bat and ball), there was Matt Renshaw who battled health issues (no toilet jokes), there was Nathan Lyon who continuously kept it tight. And don’t forget Peter Handscomb’s brilliant catching.

India? Well, their bowling could have been a little better. Their catching could have been a LOT better. Their batting can’t be worse. They collapsed for 7/11 in the first innings and 6/21 in the second. Let’s just leave it there.

Cricket.com.au is really enjoying life.

Truly exceptional performance from Smith.

2.47 pm: Good, India get past 105. Well done. Next target, Steve Smith’s 109.

The return of the Renshaw jokes.

2.42 pm: Right, this is disgraceful stuff from India. Sure, they didn’t have a chance but they’re in danger of being bowled out for below 105. For heaven’s sake, this is the world’s No. 1 Test team, a team in prime form. How can they play this badly?

That would be sad. It’s a nice stadium, but it needs some shade!

2.40 pm: Eight down India! Nathan Lyon gets it to straighten and deserves his second wicket! Ravindra Jadeja is bowled! India 102/8. Then gets Ishant Sharma for a duck two balls later. India 102/9

Secret to O’Keefe’s stunning success? Plain simple accuracy.

Schadenfreude is the word, yes?

2.31 pm: First over after lunch and O’Keefe just doesn’t stop. This time, he gets Pujara. I think O’Keefe has pretty much won the Man of the Match award here. India 100/7.

2.14 pm: The point is O’Keefe has been remarkable because he’s just been disciplined. There’s been nothing extraordinary about him. He’s kept it straight, on a beautiful line and lengthy and adjusted his speeds. And just depended on the wicket and it’s got him 11 big wickets.

The most obvious question....

2.09 pm: Eleven wickets for O’Keefe in the match. Now gets Wriddhiman Saha out lbw. Was it out? Looked dodgy, but well....India don’t really have reviews left. How bad can it get for India? They’re 99/6, 342 runs away at tea.

Hey England? Who invited you, ok?

2.05 pm: It’s not looking good for India out there. Cheteshwar Pujara just got dropped by David Warner at leg-slip. Lyon deserved that wicket. But Pujara survives. India 98/5.

How Australia are feeling right now....

But they still can’t stand the Marsh brothers. So what if they win?

1.53 pm: OUT! Ten wickets in the match for Steve O’Keefe! Ashwin was living dangerously, he reverse-swept a four, played a uppish cover-drive, but is lbw. This time, it was pad first and this time Steven Smith went for the review. India are five down for 89.

1.45 pm: GONE! Rahane’s aggression costs him his wicket. He drives uppishly but straight to cover! Nine wickets in the match for O’Keefe!

There’s also a lot of praise for Steve Smith’s brilliant 109 in the first session:

1.41 pm: Rahane gets two boundaries in that over. One was a little streaky, the other one was a much better drive. Good batting. India 67/3.

O’Keefe might have surprised many with his bowling (he’s 8 wickets in the match strong right now), but it may not be that big a surprise. This Reddit thread details his performance in India as part of Australia’s domestic team.

1.39 pm: Steady over from Nathan Lyon. Except for the overthrows. Pujara moves on to 16. India 58/3.

This probably counts as sledging.

1.33 pm: While we’re still recovering from that Kohli brainfade, India have crossed 50. The little things...they count, ok. Pujara looks a lot more solid now. Ajinkya Rahane has got off the mark.

Well, that sums it up...

Can you detect the underlying glee?

1.24 pm: Silence. There is so much silence. Virat Kohli just left a straight ball from O’Keefe. It thundered onto the stumps. We’re all a little shocked here. Kohli out for 13. India 47/3.

1.19 pm: Hazlewood into the attack. To get reverse? Hits Pujara awkwardly on his fingers but Pujara gets his own back by cutting him for four off the last ball. India 45/2.

Here’s the ball-tracking on that lbw shout. All three reds.

This tweet sums up both the team’s attitude towards DRS reviews. A bit like foreign diplomacy, yes?

1.15 pm: Brilliant. That settles the nerves a little. A flowing cover-drive from Kohli for four. India 41/2 after 15 overs.

He might be the world’s greatest leg-spinner but not everyone likes his commentary:

More on that DRS review that wasn’t.

1.10 pm: Did Australia have Kohli and not know it? Steve O’Keefe certainly thought so: Kohli lunged forward, O’Keefe thought it was pad first and then bat but only he did. Steve Smith wasn’t convinced, didn’t go for the review. Replays show it might have actually been pad first.

Turns out they did. Ball tracking shows it would have hit the stumps.

This is pretty much the big partnership for India. Get one of these two out and you’re into Rahane who’s not been in the best of form and then the lower middle-order of Saha, Ashwin, Jadeja and Jayant Yadav.

Ahh, you wish....

1.05 pm: Lyon is getting sharp turn and bounce. In fact, he’s getting it to rip off in a way Ashwin wasn’t able to do in the morning. That’s a bit of a concern for India.

Earlier in the day, Umesh Yadav took a catch, a good one. But he then ran over the boundary line. Err...

As for Lyon, his best bowling figures (7/94) have come against India...

1.00 pm: No nerves from Kohli here. He looks, like he always does, up for it. Good intent in defence, running as hard as he always does. He’s a fighter. And he has a fight on his hands, doesn’t he? India 23/2.

More DRS jokes.

12.52 pm: On the bright side, Virat Kohli has got a run. So he won’t get a pair...

Pujara hasn’t got off the mark yet. India 18/2.

Suggestions to use DRS better....

12.49 pm: ANOTHER ONE! KL Rahul misses the off-break from Lyon, hit in front, reviews and can’t overturn it! India are 16/2 and in all sorts of trouble.

To make it worse, that’s another review wasted on umpire’s call.

Lots of criticism aimed against Rahul and Vijay:

Reckon Harsha Bhogle has a point here. Umpire’s calls are tricky things.

12.45 pm: O’Keefe into the attack, O’Keefe strikes! Vijay reviews, but it’s another review wasted for India! O’Keefe’s seventh in the match! India 10/1.

That was a close call either way. It was “umpire’s call” on whether it hit the stumps so you can’t really blame Vijay for going for the review.

12.40 pm: Another one that doesn’t stick. And if we’re being critical to India, need to be critical to Australia as well. Just eludes Handscomb. Shaky start from India 9/0.

12.36 pm: Tight bowling from Australia here. Mitchell Starc has bowled a maiden. Australia really looked pumped up.

True thought. Minus the 90 runs from Starc’s tally and the game does look different.

12.31 pm: Sharp turn from Nathan Lyon with the new ball and Peter Handscomb drops one. So even Australia can drop, right? India manage to get six off that over...only two from the bat and four byes. India 5/0. We’re not talking about runs required now. Too far away.

12.28 pm: The first over has been safely negotiated by KL Rahul and Murali Vijay. No runs on the board though.

There’s a lot of talk about the pitch but Kartikeya Date says it’s all the invention of cricket writers.

#LikeABoss

12.25 pm: We’re almost about to begin. But here’s one last nod of the hat to Steve Smith:

Oh, for Sehwag....

Remember what he did in a similar chase nine years ago?

11.55 am: More reactions to enliven the lunch break:

11.45 am: That’s that. Ravindra Jadeja gets a three-wicket haul, O’Keefe edges behind. Australia get 285 and India will need 441 runs to win. That will also be lunch.

Great innings from Steve Smith. And even despite the chances he got (which BCCI really want you remind you about), he fully deserved that century.

Australia fans are happy. Indian fans are still hopeful, mainly because of the amount of time left in this match.

11.39 am: Five wickets have gone down in this session which, in theory, should be good for the bowling side. But India have already conceded some 140-odd runs for those five wickets. That has taken the lead up to monumental, record-breaking proportions. And the last wicket is still getting runs. O’Keefe just hit Umesh Yadav for a four to swell the lead to 439 runs.

Hi, Mr Sehwag, by the way.

Don’t pick on poor Ishant, ok?

11.30 am: Umesh Yadav strikes Nathan Lyon plumb in front! Great skiddy bowling. And what this means is that there won’t be lunch right now. Play will go on for another half-an-hour. Australia 279/9.

There are already some comments being made out Ashwin which is extremely unfair. He’s taken enough wickets in this match. Australia have scored 260 and are 279/9, it’s the batting that has let India down.

11.28 am: Lyon swings for the hills, Umesh Yadav takes the catch but runs over the line. Six there. And in case, you didn’t notice, the lead has swelled to 434 now. That’s more than the highest successful chase in the fourth innings (418). Gulp.

Hopelessness and optimism...

11.25 am: Five more minutes to go till lunch. Can India bowl Australia out? They are currently 269/8 and lead by 424.

Indian fans are very optimistic people...

If you missed it, here’s how Wade rode lady luck once, but couldn’t do it twice.

11.19 am: While we congratulate Smith, Starc deserves his own applause. He’s got 91 runs from 94 balls on this pitch and also kickstarted India’s collapse.

And Ravindra Jadeja ticks another record:

11.15 am: Starc goes big again! He loves that shot so much. He plays the slog sweep so well! Goes for it again, but this time off the carrom ball and holes out for 30. Ashwin finally gets his fourth. Australia 258/8 in 78, lead 413!

Turns out Smith single-handedly outscored the Indian team!

Harsha Bhogle is no longer fighting about the pitch. He’s moved on...to something even more contentious....

Oh come on. Get off that horse now.

11.12 am: Reckon Australia will just be going for the slog now. Ashwin was slogged by Starc for a big six to take their score beyond 250. The lead currently touches 407.

11.06 am: The lead has crossed 400 but Ravindra Jadeja gets the big fish! Steve Smith is lbw in front for 109. Just missed the short-arm jab on the straighter one. Jadeja strikes again! Australia 246/7. What a great knock. One for the ages.

11.00 am: Boundary for Starc and the lead now crosses 387, the highest run-chase in the fourth innings on Indian soil. Then he goes downtown big and smashes a six!

10.57 am: More praise for Steve Smith. On a rank turner, this truly is a special knock.

10.55 am: HE GETS IT! STEVE SMITH, TAKE A BOW, WHAT A CENTURY! This is a captain’s knock if there ever was one! He’s pumped up and why shouldn’t he be! What a knock. What a player!

Lucky? Maybe, but you have to make your luck count...

10.46 am: Steve Smith moves on to 93. Mitchell Starc hammered Umesh for a boundary last over and plays out Jadeja. Australia 219/6, lead by 374,

Here’s the radio commentary of that Wade dismissal;

10.40 am: Steven Smith is in the 90s now. He hit Jayant Yadav for a boundary off a full toss in the last over. India are getting wickets but it’s a little too late. Australia 212/6, 367 runs.

Will the Test end today? Don’t think India will collapse as badly.

10.33 am: But Umesh strikes four balls later. Much thicker edge on that and maybe that’s what convinced Wade to walk. Partnership broken at 35...Wade gets 20. But Australia are still 204/6 and lead by 359.

An old joke has been rehashed:

A little insight on how Smith has played this innings:

10.31 am: Don’t put the camera on Virat Kohli, guys. No, don’t put it. Nice edge on Wade there on that delivery from Yadav, everyone goes up but the umpire is unmoved. There’s a clear edge there. No reviewws for India. How frustrating is that?

It’s the second decision that hasn’t gotten India’s way. Steve Smith was given not out.

10.26 am: Aah, frustration from Umesh Yadav. Wade obviously seems to like the pace and he times Yadav away for a nice cover-drive for four. Australia 199/5, lead 354

10.19 am: India are just not able to get the collapse going. The Wade-Smith partnership is now 24. Australia 194/5 in 63 overs

And a tongue-in-cheek jibe at Smith’s unorthodox genius...

10.15 am: Steve Smith has entered the 80s. All praise really feels short. This has not been a typically Australian attack. He hasn’t bashed everything around. Nor has he been stuck in a shell. He’s moved with dexterity, got the boundaries, ran hard in this sapping well. He’s been benefitted by some poor catching, but still very well done. Australia 188/5, lead 343.

10.07 am: Wade has been looking to sweep Jadeja but he can’t do that to Jayant Yadav who delivers a good maiden over. Australia 182/5, lead 337.

How good is Matthew “Noooice, Gary” Wade? Not bad.

10.05 am: Well, well....slow motion replays on an lbw shout in the last Jadeja over showed the ball hitting Smith’s pad first before the bat. It would have gone on to hit middle stump! Umpires had said no. Now, hopefully, Kohli realises the stupidity of throwing away all your reviews. Australia 178/5.

Virat is the best chaser in the world, right? Even in Test matches, right?

10.00 am: Matthew Wade is the new batsman out there and he’s negotiated his first five balls decently. Jadeja seems to be a the bigger threat on this surface, getting enough zip and turn to beat the edge over and over again. Australia 172/5, lead 327. Steve Smith hits a boundary off the last ball of the next over to take the score to 176/5, lead 331.

More observations coming up as everyone gets up to watch this engrossing game on a Saturday morning.

9.54 am: OUT! Ravindra Jadeja gets the breakthrough! Finally gets at thin edge, appeals and is given! Mitchell Marsh walks after scoring 31. First wicket in the day goes down for Australia...they are 169/5.

If you’re an Indian fan and want to be cheered up, maybe watch how this chase of 387? India will need to do something similar to win this now.

9.45 am: Still solid from Marsh and Smith there. Jadeja zips through an on over but Australia block him out. 159/4, lead is now 314.

Do you want a Twenty20 break? Watch this epic finish in the Pakistan Super League yesterday. Mohammad Sami defended four runs off the last over and Islamabad won!

9.40 am: While all the attention has been on Steve Smith, a word of appreciation for Mitchell Marsh as well. He’s not rated much by most Australian cricket supporters and has hardly had much to do in this Test, but he’s looked a very solid figure out there with Smith. Their partnership is already 40. Australia 153/4, lead 308.

Here’s the six Marsh hit today. The crowd didn’t want to give the ball back!

9.33 am: Four runs in the first over of the day. And with that the lead crosses 300. Australia 147/4.

Smith was off the blocks even before the day started!

Keep your popcorn all warmed up.

9.20 am: Ten more minutes left for the start of the day. Here’s some more analysis on yesterday’s happenings.

For the first time in a hugely successful captaincy, Virat Kohli couldn’t fight back from the corner Australia pushed him and his team in.

Steve O’Keefe was Australia’s aggressor in chief but they had only themselves to blame.

9.00 am: Good morning and welcome to Day 3 of the India-Australia Test!

Ahh...Test cricket, nice, laid-back, slow...right? Except, someone forgot to pass on that message to this Test. Fifteen wickets fell on Day 2 for 252 runs. It started off with Australia batting, then India batted and then Australia batted again. In between, there was old-fashioned fierce fast bowling from Mitchell Starc, a spot of magic from Steve O’Keefe, a collapse of epic proportions from India and then some hard-nosed batting from Steven Smith, helped by some comical catching from India.

The story of the day was definitely this:

But here’s some more on SOK (that’s what they’re calling O’Keefe now).

Anil Kumble reflected on Virat Kohli’s first bad day as captain.