Katich rocks as Australia roll on

Australia 398 and 202 for 3 (Katich 99, Martyn 41*) lead India 185 (Kaif 55, Gillespie 5-56, McGrath 3-27) by 415 runs
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details

He is the son of a policeman, an amateur poet and, according to his captain, "the glue that holds the middle order together". Simon Katich got stuck into India's bowlers on the third day of the Nagpur Test and scored a vital 99, helping his side to a score of 202 for 3, and a lead of 415. It was an innings of both art and application, and though it ended in heartbreak, one short of a well-deserved hundred, it put Australia in a commanding position at the close of play.

It wasn't easy, and the Indians did not throw in the towel, but held on tight as the Australians pulled it away, inch by inch. Katich walked in shortly after lunch, after Matthew Hayden inside-edged a Zaheer Khan ball onto his stumps (19 for 1), with runs hard to come by. Zaheer bowled with venom and accuracy, back at his best, while Ajit Agarkar was more controlled than in the first innings, beating Justin Langer repeatedly with his away-going deliveries.

It was a strange phase of play. The pitch had slowed, the ball wasn't coming on to the bat as well as in the first innings, and there was a fair amount of lateral movement. Langer was out of sorts, and the bowlers kept things tight, while throwing in the odd unplayable ball. The first seven overs of the afternoon session were maidens, and 16 runs came off the first 15. Could the bowlers run through Australia to set up a spirited chase in the fourth innings?

Not while Katich was there. Once he settled in, Katich began to open up, and played the spinners as if his little sisters were bowling to him in the back yard. His footwork was assured, whether playing late on the back foot or stepping out, when he repeatedly got to the pitch of the ball. He smashed Anil Kumble out of the attack just before tea, hitting two fours to deep midwicket in a 10-run over, and made 38 off 31 Kumble deliveries. Kumble went for 62 in his 13 overs, and was a silhouette of the man who took 13 wickets at Chennai.

Murali Kartik bowled better, unafraid to give the ball air, extracting significant turn, and throwing in the quicker, flatter one every now and then. He accounted for Langer who, deceived by the flight and eager to accelerate, hoisted him to VVS Laxman at a widish long-on (99 for 2). Later, when Katich was on a nervous 99, Kartik trapped him plumb in front (171 for 3). But he did not otherwise trouble either Katich or Damien Martyn, who made 41 poised runs and was unbeaten at the close.

India's bowlers had nothing to be ashamed of, for, once again, it was their batsmen who had let them down. In this series, while the Indian specialist batsmen have struggled, at least the lower order have fought hard. The last five batsmen added more than 100 runs in each of the last three innings, but this time, the tail did not budge, let alone wag.

After Shane Warne induced an edge from Parthiv Patel in his first over of the day, Australia took the new ball and wrapped up the rest of the tail. Mohammad Kaif reached his second half-century in a row, but couldn't handle McGrath, nicking a typical corridor ball from him to Warne. Jason Gillespie took the rest of the wickets to finish with 5 for 56, outstanding figures that hid the fact that all his fellow bowlers were equally magnificent.

But the Australian bowlers, unlike India's, have been backed up by their batsmen, and that has made all the difference. Miracles do happen, but rain is not forecast in Nagpur any time soon, and India have, for much of this game, seemed daunted by the occasion rather than inspired by it. Don't bet on a comeback. The game in Mumbai will be a dead-rubber Test.