As it happened - India vs Australia, 1st Test, Nagpur

They're done for 88.

India take 10 wickets in a session.

Jadeja bowls Smith to take his 250th wicket.

NOPE! IT'S A NO BALL!

But three runs later, Shami gets the No. 11 Boland lbw and India go 1-0 up in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy

We're wrapping up here. Thanks for your company and remember to look out for post-match pieces from Karthik Krishnaswamy and Alex Malcolm. They'll be doozies.

This whole game has been one giant troll for Australia.

It wasn't that long ago that India's No. 9 and No. 10 put on a fifty-plus partnership.

But that's just because Ashwin and Jadeja are immaculate on these kinds of low-bounce, big-turning pitches.

And it's not just that they spear the ball into a turner and then hope for the best.

That's what Murphy did to take his seven for. He was quick through the air. Largely flat with his trajectory. Almost always bowled from around the wicket. Very little variation. Very little pulling of the strings.

Ashwin, though, is a little different.

First, he saw the pitch had worn enough that balls off half-volley length were turning big. So now, he had a way to trap batters who wanted to be aggressive against him; who wanted to drive him at every opportunity.

That's what Khawaja tried. He got one shot away. Then he got caught. Ashwin's threat assessment here was near perfect.

Then Warner, who did everything to protect his outside edge. He kept playing inside the line of the ball, which meant all of Ashwin's big turning deliveries were harmlessly spinning past.

So Ashwin made a slight adjustment. He didn't target the rough against Warner. He hit the fuller end of the good length area which wasn't as badly worn. So he'd get turn, but not so much that it would keep spinning past Warner's bat.

Warner got two boundaries away, and just as his confidence was building, he got done by natural variation. He got done the first time he didn't play for the straight one.

Labuschagne decided he'd play everything off the back foot. Some batters do that if they don't know which way the ball will go. They do that when the trust their hands to react quick enough. And while that sounds brave, it discounts two very important things. Jadeja is WAY quicker. And these are low-bounce pitches. So all you're doing is basically daring him to get you out lbw.

This is what sets India's spinners apart. They are capable of posing different threats to the same batter and different threats depending on the batter. All while keeping the stumps in play. All while giving away no loose balls.

Australia's spinners kept asking the same question over and over again. It didn't help that Nathan Lyon's main mode of wicket-taking - with bounce - was useless on this pitch and he just couldn't adapt.

100 lbws for Ashwin as well; four of them in this innings.

There's help in the pitch. India are maximising it by bowling within the stumps, which is forcing Australia to play. No short balls. No leg side gifts. No freebies. No release shots.

Ashwin and Jadeja are masters of this. As if that's not enough, they're masters of natural variation too.

All this means, you don't know which of your edges to protect. Warner had a plan to protect himself against the straighter one. But the one time he didn't, he got lbw.

Okay, why don't I just try to hit out; try to throw them off their length by sweeping everything. Well, Carey tried and he lasted six balls.

These are tough conditions. They're made even tougher by relentless bowling. And as a result, Australia are collapsing. It doesn't look good, yes, but this could have happened to any visiting team

Ashwin is bowling physics-beating balls now.

Like balls that shouldn't exist based on the existing laws of nature.

But they're coming out of his hand and they're taking wickets

He goes around the wicket to the right-handed batter. And gets him lbw.

Now that shouldn't happen because for lbw, you need to pitch the ball in line with the stumps, or outside off stump.

That from around the wicket is hard. Because a ball pitching in line with the stumps will generally take it past them with the angle.

You need to put in loads of revs. You need to get tons of turn for it to straighten from that angle and keep the stumps in play.

Ashwin straddles the balance perfectly and Handscomb is gone

Reminds me of James Anderson getting Steven Smith lbw from around the wicket in a pink-ball Ashes Test. Same kind if ridiculous physics beating delivery... Except I just went searching for the match and can't find it! Damn it! Was it all a dream?!

This is overs 8 to 18. That's when Ashwin and Jadeja have begun to bowl together in this innings. Notice the lack of singles.

It's not that Australia haven't tried. It's just that hard to work the ball around when

a) two spinners are bowling this well
b) their captain backs him up with perfect fields

Smith's decided to play DGAF cricket. He's come down the pitch AGAIN to Jadeja. Second time in two overs. And AGAIN, he nails his shot, four through past short midwicket.

BRILLIANT SHOT.

Speaks of Smiths' genius that he's able to come down the track to Jadeja, one of the quickest spinners going around, and launch him down the ground

Australia 43 for 2.

To an extent, this shot comes out of Smith not being able to get runs regularly.

Also, it's an effort to make India pull back some of their single-saving fielders. It's a risk, and it's Smiths' genius, that helps him pull it off. Top batter. Top battle.

Meanwhile, at the other end, Ashwin gets Renshaw lbw.

This has turned into a why am I even here kind of a Test match for Australia.

India's No. 9 made almost half their whole first innings total. Now here they are crumbling again

It felt just a bit as though Warner was getting into this game.

He respected the fact that he was new at the crease and focused on defence to start.

Then having spent 40 balls out there, seeing what Ashwin wants to do, he allows himself to be himself.

Those loopy balls with which Ashwin is searching for the outside edge can be driven if they're straight enough. If they're close enough to his body. He nails them.

But suddenly here's the natural variation. The one that skids on. Warner has been playing for this ball all innings. And the one time he didn't, he gets done. Lbw on the front foot with the bat outside the line playing for spin.

There's another thing that India do really well in spinning conditions.

They don't let the strike roll over.

Jadeja erred just slightly by offering a leg stump half-volley to Smith, who absolutely nails a flick, but there's midwicket in the way.

A release shot ends up being zero runs and the pressure on Australia keeps piling on.

Warner has short three around his bat - slip, gully, silly point and a little further away short cover.

Smith is dealing with slip and silly point, but his release shots on the leg side are all covered by square leg, midwicket and mid-on. No easy singles.

Warner's doing well though. His plan of not offering the outside edge; of constantly playing inside the line protects him from natural variation and demands Ashwin to bowl the perfect ball to get him caught behind.

So Ashwin, who has been bowling around the wicket now shifts over the wicket, to see if a change of angle might disrupt Warner's gameplan.

Okay, this was a plan. Labuschangne's plan. And it doesn't come off.

In the last Jadeja over, he got beat on the back foot by a big turning ball on the fuller end of good length by playing back.

In this over, Jadeja goes even fuller, and even straighter, on middle and leg.

Labuschagne still stays back. Suggests he'd decided to play Jadeja off the back foot. Judge him off the surface and trust the quickness of his hands to adjust.

That's a dangerous plan against Jadeja.

He's so quick off the pitch. He's too quick off the pitch. Plumb lbw. Australia 26 for 2 in 11 overs.

Labuschagne can only laugh.

India's spinners are unplayable.

First bit of deception - Jadeja's trajectory is flat, that makes Labuschagne play back to a ball that's on the fuller end of good length.

Second bit and this one is the bit that makes you go whoa. It turns miles. Miles past the outside edge.

The good thing though is Labuschagne did well not to follow the ball. If he had, that would've opened up the possibility of an outside edge

Kohli drops Warner. Would have been his 10th score under 20 in 18 innings in India.

Lovely bowling from Ashwin again. He's slowed his pace down this innings. Focusing on drawing the left-hander forward. But the length still doesn't let him get to the pitch of the ball.

The really really full balls are turning a lot. Against Khawaja, who was happy to go hard at him, Ashwin knew he had a chance with this length.

Against Warner, who is trying not to offer the outside edge by repeatedly playing inside the line and also concentrating on his defence, Ashwin makes a small but crucial adjustment. He needs turn, but not too much turn.

So he bowls on the full end of a good length. From there the turn is less but also just right to beat the middle, take the edge and go through to Kohli at slip who drops it.

Outstanding bowling. Not great catching.

Warner is doing his absolute best to play inside the line of the ball. To play for the one that goes straight on and get him bowled or lbw.

Ashwin, who has dismissed Warner 10 times in Test cricket, starts the battle with another loopy special. Pitches very very full. Almost half-volley length. On middle and leg stump. Warner plays inside the line and gets beaten big time. KS Bharat collects the ball above his chest.

Here's the difference. India's spinners get more out of these conditions

India put pressure from both ends.

And it comes from their fast bowler too.

Shami knows the value of the new ball in conditions like these. He will never stray away from the stumps. He will never let the batter get a breather. Especially a new batter.

This appeal is for lbw, the ball angling in from over the wicket, hitting a good length area and skidding through beneath Labuschagne's bat.

Balls of a similar length will climb higher in Australia. Here they skid through.

Big appeal for lbw, turned down on field, DRS says on-field call on impact and clipping off stump.

Ashwin loves bowling to left-handers.

Ashwin loves bowling with the new ball.

Rohit loves match-ups.

He had to wait 22 overs to bowl in the first innings. Now he's immediately on. And poof.

There were plenty of evidence this morning of really full balls - half-volleys actually - turning out of the rough outside left-handers' off stump.

Ashwin saw that. He went straight for that, and got hit for four. He didn't care. He goes for the same loopy ball. This time it dips on Khawaja. He's committed to the drive and caught at slip

They lead by 223.

Pat Cummins bowls Axar Patel for 84.

And with that everybody goes to lunch.

Axar Patel is closing in on the highest score by a No. 9 for India in Test cricket

The best thing about him is that ever since he came out, he's played like a proper batter. He's trusted his defence no matter how tough the pitch got. And then as he grew in confidence, his judgment of length which informed his footwork got better and better. His back foot play was especially impressive.

Axar on the front foot: 46 runs off 111 balls. 84% control.
Axar on the back foot: 28 runs off 52 balls. 92% control.

Australia's longest partnership in this Test was 202 balls for the 3rd wicket between Smith and Labuschagne.

India's 8th wicket partnership was longer - 211 balls - and their 9th wicket partnership got almost half far (86 balls).

#Ouch

Murphy eventually broke through - that's his seventh wicket on Test debut which is also just his eighth first-class match. In the middle of a really unforgiving game for his team, he's really stood out

Also, they don't just randomly win. They innings win. Each of these were innings wins

What do you do now as an Australia batter?

David Warner averages 22 in India, with 9 out of his 17 innings here totalling less than 20 runs. Usman Khawaja played his very first Test innings in India in this Test. And he fell for 1. Steven Smith and Marnus Labuschagne will once again be their pillars. But this time they'll be playing in conditions that are actually spin-friendly. And their lower order did not inspire a lot of confidence in the first innings.

Australia are in a hole. They'll probably want to attack India's quicks -- but will they even bowl enough overs? India have three spinners as opposed to Australia's two. The second either Shami or Siraj start getting hit, Rohit can pull them out.

So the obvious question is, how are Australia going to play India's battery of spinners on a pitch where even really full balls are gripping and turning. Really full balls are the ones where you can get to the pitch and drive. But even they are getting the help needed to turn so big they beat the edge

A drop in the last over of play yesterday, from Smith.

And now another in the first half hour, from Boland.

Shami is bound to give a few more chances though.

And I guess Smith's drop of Jadeja didn't cost them too much this morning.

Still, away from home, a team needs to do these basics right to stay in the game.

India leading by 162. Axar Patel batting pretty normally, no big rush even though No. 10 is at the other end. I'm prolly reading too much into that but it kinda suggests that India feel they have a good lead to work with and consider any runs they get now as bonus. Coz otherwise, the better batter would farm the strike and hit out more, wouldn't he?

Murphy takes his sixth wicket. And he's completely deceived the batter.

He holds the seam so that it is perpendicular to the pitch. Not angled 45 degrees like its normal for an offspinner, like how Lyon usually bowls it.

That means it has a strong chance of pitching and going straight on and that's what happens.

It pitches outside off from around the wicket and goes on with the angle. Jadeja had left it, expecting turn. Instead he sees his off stump knocked back.

Good strike from Murphy, but danger signs for Australia's batters. They'll start their innings in these conditions behind by 150 runs.

There was a lot of talk about the Nagpur pitch being deeply biased against left-handers because the curators didn't water a spot just outside their off stump to create a readymade rough even ahead of the first day's play.

But over the course of the nearly 200 balls faced by Ravindra Jadeja, and the over 100 faced by Axar Patel, there's been precious little evidence of that.

There's been maybe slightly more than occasional instances of variable turn and variable bounce. But that's what you expect in India.

And, it's the third day now. It's accumulated wear and tear. This is the time in ANY Test match where spinners come into play and Nagpur is showing signs of quick turn. India's lead of 147 looks real big.

Alex Malcolm from the ground on Day 3: It's another warm day in Nagpur. A carbon copy of the last two. India's spinners are warming their fingers up ahead of bowling second. Axar was out in the middle bowling with Ashwin rather than preparing to bat. Could the match end today or can Australia find a way to make India bat again?

Meanwhile, Australia's injured duo Josh Hazlewood and Cameron Green are having a decent bowl in the middle as part of their load-building ahead of Delhi. Hazlewood had a decent bowl on match-day eve as he tries to shake the Achilles tendonitis that kept him out of this Test. He is clearly recovering well if he's having another solid bowl today. Green is also building his workloads up to try and push for the second Test although his finger still needs time.

The city of Dharamsala was supposed to host the third Test of this series, but that is now under some doubt. Nagraj Gollapudi has more

Rohit Sharma was brilliant just by being normal. By Karthik Krishnaswamy

Lyon's apprentice Murphy outdoes his master in Nagpur. By Alex Malcolm

Breaking news: We live in a world where people unironically compare a work of art with an orgy of nonsense.

Come on, Vin. You don't throw shade like that on what you yourself created. That's just depressing. I need something to cheer me up. Oooh, how bout wholesome pictures of a guy who, two years ago, went around Australia babysitting VIP kids.

It's so great to see Rishabh Pant doing well after the accident.

Australia were 162 for 5. They were bowled out for 177. India were 168 for 5. They're still batting on 321 for 7. That's the story of this Test match.

Rohit Sharma produced a masterful century in conditions where runs are hard to come by but survival is possible. It's his genius that he managed to get his 120 at a strike rate of nearly 57.

His innings stood out for the timing of his strokeplay as much as the sensibility of it. He took several calculated risks - including the shot that brought up his hundred, a down the track, inside out loft over extra cover soon after a wicket, and barely seconds after the camera caught him looking skyward and shaking his head at his team being five down. All of these shots were designed to keep Australia from ever feeling they could work an advantage.

Ravindra Jadeja, playing his first Test since March 2022 now with a newly repaired knee, has added a half-century to go with his five-for. Axar Patel, coming in at No. 9, has fifty as well, at a control percentage of 90.

India's spinners picked up 8 for 117. They have also made 141 runs in 334 balls. India's depth in home conditions is just ridiculous. So much so that they made light of perhaps the best spell of bowling in this match from Australia captain Pat Cummins (nine false shots in 30 balls, so on average, one in three). At the other end, Todd Murphy, 22, picked up a five-for on debut.

India force Cummins back into the attack. And he looks tired. That burst - that incredible burst just after tea - has sapped him. It's only been 13 overs since that effort. So its understandable that there's a long leg stump half-volley in his first over back at 130 kph and India's No. 9 Axar Patel whacks it down the ground for four. Damn. This game. So cruel.

They're entering the kind of territory from where a team is unlikely to lose.

Their No. 9 has batted 50 balls with a control percentage of 85 on a tough pitch.

This is why playing this Indian team in their conditions is just straight up punishment.

Side note: Also why Kuldeep Yadav is unlikely to play in this series. This innings from Axar Patel proves why batting depth (which comes without compromising bowling depth which is definitely true in Axar's case) is so crucial.

India's spin-bowling allrounders have already totalled 100 runs with their second skill on a tough pitch

Five-for on come back on Thursday.

Fifty on comeback on Friday.

It's 2017 all over again.

Australia ran into Jadeja and couldn't move him then too.

And now, six years later, he's once again proven to be a thorn in their side.

That knee injury took its sweet time getting better but India will be so glad that it vanished in time for this series. They now lead by 80 runs.

Cummins was a danger. India saw him off(ish). Australia didn't have anybody else who could bowl at the same intensity. India have taken advantage.

Heart eyes emoji

The 81st

The 83rd

The 85th

The 87th

The 89th

Cummins produced nine false shots in these 30 balls. That's one in three!

He got each way movement. Largely off the pitch - which suggests he was REALLY hitting it hard - he was putting serious effort behind each delivery and he was scrambling the seam to maximise the movement.

All that coupled with his accuracy at 140+ kph in hot conditions makes this perhaps the spell of the match. At least to watch.

Cummins is in the middle of a scary spell.

Fast bowlers aren't supposed to do this in India.

Then again they weren't supposed to do it in Pakistan too.

And guess what happened?

Cummins is getting the new ball to jag just slightly.

And his accuracy is making sure that teensy little movement looks disproportionately menacing.

Jadeja survives by about three millimetres - the ball striking his pad just outside the line of off stump to ruin another lbw appeal. That's his second so far in this innings.

There's debate on the broadcast about which ball was better, Shami to Warner or Cummins to Rohit.

It's obviously Cummins to Rohit. That one toppled a centurion. A centurion who has played late, who has played straight, who has looked a class apart, and who thought he had the ball covered only for his off stump to take a walk and it wasn't even a leisurely one at that. Thing was moving like it was rushing to the loo.

AND ON DEBUT TOO!

Brilliant stuff from a man is touted to become a superstar.

His family has travelled here to Nagpur. They watched him receive his first Test cap yesterday. Now they're part of another celebration

His discipline has been good. He is capable of getting drift, dip and turn (scroll down for more detail).

This wicket though is the result of natural variation. The new ball just skidding on. Bharat lunges forward to defend, and because of that, his bat is trapped. It can't come around his pad quickly enough to make contact with the ball. Umpire Illingworth says not out on field, Australia use DRS to reverse it.

Australia strike in the first over after tea too.

Cummins takes the new ball soon as its available and he gets his opposite number by making his off stump cartwheel out of the ground. Dude has a history of bowling unplayables. Kept doing it to Pujara in Australia but to replicate that here in Nagpur takes something exponentially special.

Rohit's been exponentially special too. He walks off with 120 against his name. India lead by 53.

India's depth. It keeps winning the little battles. Especially at home as they go to tea on 226 for 5.

When they were bowling, they gave nothing away. Five bowlers all of whom were obsessed with targeting the stumps, without really straying down leg. Plus Rohit also found a way to cut singles off with his field placement, like when Carey was starting to reverse sweep a lot.

Here Australia had India at 168 for 5. At a time when they had to keep pushing, to keep the pressure on, they've had to turn to part-time options. They tried delaying it, with a few overs from Boland. But with the new ball around the corner, they needed the fast bowler fresh. So in comes Labuschagne and he starts bowling long hops that get hit for runs.

Fifty partnership between Rohit and Jadeja comes up. India's lead almost fifty (49) as well

A moment that describes the way this match has gone for Australia. Debutant Todd Murphy raps Jadeja on the pads, but the on-field umpire Illingworth gives it not out. Largely because there are two things to consider - bat and pad are close so it's not perfectly clear which hit first. And second, it looks like Jadeja's front foot has moved across enough for the impact to be just outside off. Australia consider it all and go for a review and it is INCREDIBLY close.

Pad first. By a fraction. So that was good. Impact umpires call. By a fraction. That was bad.

From Alex Malcolm at the ground: "Matthew Renshaw has returned to the field having passed a fitness test. He is reporting no major concerns. Renshaw will continue to be monitored by team medical staff."

So to recap, Australia dropped Travis Head, who is No. 4 on the ICC Test batting rankings, because he hasn't shown enough evidence of being able to play spin in the subcontinent.

They replaced him with Matt Renshaw who looked okay against spin six years ago, but that was when he was opening the batting and so he would've faced said spin after having spent some time at the crease.

Here he came in at No. 5 and got a golden duck. Then he had to go off the field with injury.

Australia gave up a lead and had to dig into their part-time resources, of which Head was one of their better ones but he wasn't available. Rohit and Jadeja are making merry.

There's overthinking. And there's bad luck. But this is a horrible, disfigured mix of the two that only ever happens to Pep Guardiola in the Champions League.

Plus, I'm about 32.56% sure there's an alternate reality where Head was picked, but failed, and everyone is moaning about why Australia didn't select Renshaw.

Lyon bowls a Jadeja special to Jadeja himself in the 71st over. A ball meant to turn, but just keeps going on with the arm.

It's only a whisker from trapping him lbw.

In the next over, Boland gets Jadeja's edge, but it doesn't quite carry to Smith at first slip.

Both of these go for boundaries. India's lead now up to 30. Soon as it starts pushing 60-70, they'll feel like they're going out of sight.

Murphy in the 63rd over

Lyon in the 64th over

Murphy in the 65th over

Oh boy. Is it happening? Again?

Test cricket is hard because it takes place over such a long time. Human bodies tire after they are forced to spend 60+ overs on the field in unfamiliar conditions.

This is usually when Jadeja comes to the crease.

And he shows no mercy.

Murphy bowls a short ball. It's a mistake. It happens. But Jadeja is so quick to jump back and carve it to the point boundary.

India now lead by 11 runs.

Australia react by taking Murphy off and bringing back their best bet for dot balls - Scott Boland.

There's tension in this game again.

When India had wickets in hand, Rohit would dispel it with a calculated risk.

Now, he's feeling a little more pressure. Not so long ago, when he inside-edged a ball onto his pad, and it only just beat short leg diving to his right, he looked up at the sky and shook his head.

Rohit has fought really hard but suddenly he feels as though all that work might not pay off.

Except, one eye blink later, he leaps down the pitch and lofts the best bowler of the opposition so far against the turn over cover to bring up a sublime century.

He wasn't to the pitch of the ball. The last batter who made that mistake is back in the hut - Suryakumar Yadav. But Rohit mitigates the risk by playing with a straight bat. That's the highlight of his innings so far. Sensible options.

Through the gate from around the wicket. Incredible bowling from Nathan Lyon!

Offspinners love getting batters out like this, though it's the lesser seen round the wicket sucker punch.

Suryakumar was very loose. Playing too far in front of his body. Front foot staying leg side, like it does when he plays T20 cricket. Leaving a big gap between bat and pad. Exactly the opposite of what Rohit has been doing for two days.

India 168 for 5. Australia were 162 for 5.

But the big difference is the man in the middle now. Ravindra Jadeja. He already has history of coming in when Australia have brought the game back in the balance and taking it away from them. All through the BGT 2017, he did just this to end up as Player of the Series

Wicket first ball after lunch!

Kohli caught down the leg side!

Murphy 4 for 39 and on course for all 10!

Suryakumar comes out on debut and gets off the mark with a sweep shot for four!

It's all happening!

Rohit and Labuschagne were the two batters who have looked the least in trouble on this turning pitch with control percentages in the early 80s.

But there is a significant difference.

Rohit has got 71 runs off the 115 balls that he has been in control of. Labuschagne got 43 runs off the 105 balls that he had been in control of.

Now part of this is because Labuschagne was batting in the first innings of a series where his team is the underdog. He was dealing with the loss of two early wickets. And he got very few bad balls. He had no choice but to be cautious.

Rohit began his innings with very little scoreboard pressure and several half-volleys on the pads. But it still paints a picture. India are ahead in this match because they have the batter who has done the best on this pitch.

The funny thing as well is that even when Rohit has not been in control (27 balls) he's still scored at a strike rate of 52 (14 runs). So, as is often the case on tough pitches, there's been some luck involved too.

Whole thing reminds me of a bowler-dominated India vs South Africa Test in Cape Town 2018 where one innings from AB de Villiers defined the course of the game

India go to lunch trailing by only 26 runs. But they'll be well aware of the way this Test is moving. Periods of ease once batters are set but once there's an opening, there's a spurt of wickets. So they simply cannot relax.

Rohit for one isn't relaxing. In the first Test of a big series, the India captain is 85 not out off 142 balls.

Australia have been slow to get into rhythm but towards the latter half of this morning session, they created enough dot ball pressure, largely through the work of Scott Boland, to make a few inroads, entirely thanks to debutant Todd Murphy.

India, you'd think are ahead of the game, but they haven't gone out of sight just yet.

This kid is good.

He came in with the reputation of being the second-best spinner in Australia behind Nathan Lyon.

And that's not undue praise because...

He deceived KL Rahul with his drift and his dip. The batter originally thought he could get to the pitch of the ball and hit against the spin because initially the ball seemed to be moving across him. It was bowled from around the wicket. But right before Rahul could connect, it drifted in, past where he thought it would pitch, so past the middle of his bat. That prolly happened coz of all the revs that Murphy puts on it with an action similar to Graeme Swann who also used to put loads of revs on the ball. It also dipped on Rahul, another consequence of the revs, to leave him in no-man's land. Simple caught and bowled.

Then he nailed the perfect length to dismiss R Ashwin. Tossed up to drag the batter forward, but there was still enough distance between the pitch of the ball and the bat so it could grip, turn, beat his inside edge and rap him on the pads.

Finally, he takes out India's best player of spin with extra bounce. Pujara top-edges a sweep. It's all about the revs here. Murphy already has the raw material and this experience will only help him get better.

From Alex Malcolm at the ground: Australian batter Matthew Renshaw has been sent for a precautionary scan on his right knee on the second morning in Nagpur. Renshaw experienced some right knee soreness prior to the warm-up on the second day but did the warm-up in full. However, he did not take the field when play began with Ashton Agar replacing him as the substitute. Renshaw iced his knee in the rooms before heading for a scan midway through the first session.

Malcolm adds: Australia's two inexperienced bowlers, with just six Tests between them, are showing their senior counterparts how it's done. Pat Cummins and Nathan Lyon were far from impressive this morning. But Scott Boland and Todd Murphy have pegged it right back. Boland is doing what he has done for years on flat pitches at the MCG. He is angling into off stump at decent pace with immaculate lengths. Asking the batters to defend every ball to straight fields and building dots. Murphy is backing up his senior Victorian team-mate. His control has been excellent from around the wicket, bowling superbly to a well-set field, and he was rewarded with the wicket of Ashwin.

Boland is racking up those dots. This was him in the 38th over

Debutant Murphy in the 39th over

Boland again. His spell reads 7-4-5-0

And all that leads to a wicket. R Ashwin is lbw to Murphy.

Australia have their first of the morning, with a little help from DRS.

In comes Cheteshwar Pujara, in his 99th Test. And third ball facing spin, he's already down the track. Spooks Murphy, whose next ball is short. And Pujara absolutely naiiiiiils the cut shot. Four through cover. Man, this guy against spin is something else.

Cummins and Lyon are involved in a discussion almost every over.

Boland from the other end is getting appreciable reverse swing.

Rohit and Ashwin are both extremely conscious of committing as late as possible to their shots; playing as close to the body as well.

And when they're facing Lyon, they're playing inside the line of the ball, protecting their stumps and are happy to get beaten on the outside edge by the straight one.

Batting is about risk management and there is enough risk out there playing against an Australian team that, even while not quite at their best, are plenty up for the fight.

The trap was set.

Two men went out on the hook.

Cummins charges in and goes for Rohit's throat.

Rohit doesn't take a backwards step.

He goes for the hook...

... And only juuuuuuuust clears the deep square leg fielder.

This game is heating back up again.

Australia's attack is slightly unbalanced; their second spinner is a debutant still working out his game. So it's their captain picking up the slack and doing the donkey work on a pitch that isn't made for him. Cummins is doing the enforcer role and his first gambit almost comes off. Plus, the ball is starting to reverse

But see, at the other end, just as Australia are starting to feel like they're getting back in the game, R Ashwin slog sweeps Lyon for a four and India are suddenly past 100. They only trail by 68 runs. If this keeps up - these spurts of boundaries - the focus will shift from trying to take wickets to trying to stop runs. And that often plays into batters' hands.

Cat and mouse game out there.

Rohit Sharma was going at a run-a-ball for a long time yesterday. Hit three boundaries in the first over. Was 31 off 28 even in the ninth over. Some of that was because he was set up for success by a few half-volleys on the pads.

But the biggest I'm him thing that Rohit did was when spin came on.

He didn't necessarily dominate them - because that's not possible on a track where some go straight on and some turn sharply. He did, however, disrupt their efforts at settling into a rhythm by coming down the track and getting boundaries away.

Every time there were a few dot balls, a few misbehaving, Rohit would be down there, at the pitch and launching it.

India have to bat last on this pitch and by that time it'd be a real problem. So they know the value of a big lead. Maybe even big enough for them to close the Test match by batting just once.

A change of end for Nathan Lyon has allowed him to pose even greater threat. He's getting some to go straight on and get the outside edge. Most are turning in sharp enough to keep lbw and bat-pad catches in play. He's going around the wicket to test both edges of the right-hand batters out there. Australia realise they need to tighten up big time today and they've started well

What we've learnt so far.

Jadeja was just rubbing some pain-relief cream on his hand

Also he's an underappreciated bowling genius

Australia's selections have been weird.

Marnus Labuschagne may turn out to be their biggest player in this series.

PS - if you're in the US, you can watch Ind vs Aus live on ESPN+ in English or in Hindi

India need to win at least three Tests in this Border-Gavaskar Trophy to be assured of a place in the World Test Championship final in June later this year. And they've started very very well.

The best phase of play for Australia today was when their two best players were out in the middle. But the drop in quality once Marnus Labuschagne and Steven Smith were dismissed was palpable.

India's quality, especially when they play at home, makes sure there are no drop offs in levels. This was a spinning pitch but it was their quicks Shami and Siraj who nailed the openers. Then Jadeja and Ashwin and Axar kept tagging in and out and in and out to the point it felt less like a cricket match and more a handicap wrestling match.

This may well be the thing that decides this series. Australia will want more from their support acts

KL Rahul is weird, right? When in form, he plays shots that will grace magazine covers. The last Border-Gavaskar series in India was a watershed moment for him; earmarking him as a player capable of dealing with high quality bowling attacks on seriously tough pitches.

Cut to six years later, just ahead of this Test match, there was talk of his place under threat because of Shubman Gill and Suryakumar Yadav. This after captaining the team in their last match in December 2022.

This innings - he might only be 16 off 59 and he had to wait 55 balls to get his first boundary - will carry a lot of significance. If he can help set India up with a lead, the outside noise will slightly more easier to ignore.

And we know Rahul pays at least enough mind to outside noise to base his celebrations around it

India are looking very good so far.

KL Rahul appears to be perfectly happy trusting his defence. He's 9 off 42 in the 15th over, playing back as often as he can, buying that extra bit of time to deal with the spin off the pitch.

Rohit Sharma finding those release shots every time he looks for them; now he has to go looking because Australia have tightened up a little bit. He launched Lyon straight over his head, using his feet to get to the pitch

India are 49 for 0 in 15 overs. And Australia have lost one-fourth of their total already.

Guess which of these overs were bowled by Pat Cummins, the Australia captain and their premier fast bowler

For some inexplicable reason, a really really good player has been constantly feeding half-volleys on the pads and Rohit in particular has taken full toll.

Ravindra Jadeja (22-8-47-5) and R Ashwin (15.5-2-42-3) wrap up Australia's innings for 177.

It was hard work for the batters out there, but not quite unplayable.

India's spinners simply made the most of the help on offer, attacking the stumps and exploiting the doubt they sowed in the batter's mind by getting some to turn and some to go straight on.

Marnus Labuschagne and Steven Smith were the best batters on display. One of them was done in by big turn. The other got bowled by a straight ball. In between, there was a lot of pulling of the strings, Jadeja especially manipulating his length and his trajectory to lead the batter wherever he wanted before kissing him bye-bye.

India will be happy but they'll know this isn't a done deal.

Ashwin takes out Cummins. Australia 172 for 7.

India are into the tail and they get there with a ball that expasperates batters and delights bowlers.

The straight one on a spinning pitch.

Ashwin's intention seems as if he wants this to go straight. He undercuts the ball, it's flat and pushed through outside off.

Cummins is a hitter. His defence isn't always his strong suit. He's caught in the crease. He's pushing with hard hands. The edge is academic. The catch is easy.

India have five six wickets since lunch with Jadeja getting debutant Todd Murphy lbw.

Australia go to tea at 178 for 8. It looks bad but they're not out of the game just yet. Peter Handscomb is a specialist batter and he's still out there. He needs to go hard now and get them to 200.

Alex Carey bowled.

But he's played a crucial little innings. 36 off just 33 balls in what is looking more and more like a low-scoring Test. Australia 162 for 6 and pushing for 200+

Carey profited playing the reverse sweep. He falls to it as Ashwin spears the ball outside leg stump, outside the range of the shot. Inside edge. Bowled.

Out comes Pat Cummins. Dude can play. Has the joint-fastest fifty in IPL (though that may as well be a different sport played on a different planet)

This feels like a 200 first innings game. Australia are 130 for 5 now, with Alex Carey sweeping and reverse sweeping eight of the first 14 balls that he's faced.

It's risky. But everything's risky on pitches like there. So might as well get some quick runs before the one with your name comes.

Besides, when he's defending, he seems to be doing it outside the line of the ball a lot, inviting the possibility of lbw and bat-pad catches. Carey looks much more of a threat when he's attacking out there and it's making India pull back some of their close catchers.

You know how it looks kinda easy to draw stuff?

And then you see google famous paintings and you're blown away.

Well it kinda feels like that every time you see Ravindra Jadeja play.

What he does, everybody can do. Just that only geniuses can do it as his level.

As Sid Monga noted right at the time of the dismissal, Jadeja kept pushing Labuschagne back. Quicker balls. Flatter balls. All setting up the trap. Then he bowled a similar length ball - except this one was slightly more tossed up and slightly more outside off - and that deceived Labuschagne. It made him think there were runs on offer and he went for the drive.

Big spin off a spin-friendly pitch and poof.

These variations - his control of length and line and flight and dip and angles - and his ability to get inside a batter's mind - he's a pretty good batter himself - have all translated to 244 wickets in 61 Test matches.

And of course there's natural variation. In theory, every bowler should be able to benefit from it, but few are able to exploit it as well as Jadeja. Case in point - he has bowled Steven Smith with a straight ball after spending all day turning stuff past his outside edge. Australia 109 for 5.

He hadn't felt the sun in five months as he worked back up from knee injury.

It showed on his first time back on the field, when he picked up just one wicket in the Ranji Trophy, India's first-class tournament.

Two days later, he was back to his best. 7 for 53.

And now Ravindra Jadeja has dismissed Marnus Labuschagne on 49.

Big wicket. Big player. Man of the Series the last time the BGT was played in India. And this is why.

Australia went from 2 for 2 to 76 for 2 and are now 84 for 4. Jadeja's sent Matt Renshaw packing too. And the ball that got him spun from the good part of the pitch. Big puff of dust escaping from the good part of the pitch let alone the rough.

First over after lunch and Shami has got the ball to reverse swing.

There's already been evidence of variable bounce and variable turn.

Nagpur is still fine for batting. It's just the first day. But as it starts to wear...

First innings runs are going to decide this Test match.

Karthik Krishnaswamy, our reporter at the ground: Feels like Australia have won an important toss. A few balls have misbehaved, but not a whole lot just yet. The longer Australia bat, the more wear and tear before India bat, and this partnership is probably key to how long Australia bat. India have bowled pretty well, and they'll keep plugging away patiently after lunch and wait to break this stand. Another hour, though, and you might start seeing small signs of panic.

DING!

A Test match that's felt like a boxing match.

India landed the early punch but Australia have rolled with them.

And that's because they have Steven Smith and Marnus Labsuschagne out there.

People always say when you're facing spin you need to either be fully forward or fully back. But in practice it's never so straightforward... unless you have two batting geniuses at the crease together.

All through this partnership, Smith and Labuschagne have been spectacularly decisive. There's been examples of excellent judgement of length. Fully committed shots. And no half measures. From 2 for 2, Australia go to lunch at 76 for 2.

Shiva Jayaraman: India should be desperate to keep Australia’s first-innings total as low as possible on this Nagpur pitch that is likely get tougher to score runs on as the match progresses. For that, they have to first break this stand between Steven Smith and Marnus Labuschange. No other pair has proved as prolific for their team in Tests in recent times than this one. Since 2020 and before the start of this Test, the Smith-Labuschagne stands had accounted for 11.55% of Australia’s runs. This is the highest percentage of runs contributed by any pair who batted together at least five times in Tests in that period. Mushfiqur Rahim and Litton Das are the only other pair to account for more than 10% of their team’s runs.

Good spinners knows how to land six balls on the same spot. That way they can wear batters down; that way they can lure batters into traps.

The thing with India's spinners is that they have the knowhow to make every ball feel like an event. Especially at home.

Ashwin - kept back till the 22nd over - immediately went round the wicket to Australia's right-handers because that would bring both of their edges into play. And his very first ball squared Marnus Labuschagne up and took his outside edge. That seeded doubt in the batter's mind and for the rest of the over, he was being picked apart mostly by offbreaks turning into him in various degrees.

The uncertainty of which one would go straight on with the angle was always on Labuschagne's mind. This is why he said playing Ashwin is like a game of chess

And at the other end, Ravindra Jadeja lures Steven Smith forward with his flight and beats his bat with his turn. Smith immediately presented a thumbs up to the bowler. This is a challenge that Australia are relishing. These are conditions and opponents where if they win it will become legendary

And immediately we realise why because the next over after beating Smith's outside edge, Jadeja makes a slight change. He bowls from wider of the crease. And once again the outside edge is beaten, except this time he's almost bowled.

That little shift wider of the crease meant the ball is angled sharply into the stumps bringing two modes of dismissal into play - caught behind which was in play last time too, and now bowled. Jadeja made this adjustment in the space of barely five minutes.

This is the level of cricket being played out there. India vs Australia. It's on a whole other level

You'll notice the difference in control percentage.

Labuschagne 88% after 56 balls.

Smith 77% after 30 balls.

I'm getting the feeling that's because Smith is actively trying to attack the spinners more than Labuschagne is.

And at one of those times, he looks for the big cover drive and edges a tossed up Axar Patel delivery - having already been done in by his dip previously - to the right of slip. Kohli's the man there and he barely has any time to reach to his right. It's a reflex catch but its put down.

A little later, this one ball just spits up off a good length. Scary stuff on a first day pitch. But Smith does well, dropping his hands as soon as he gets even half an inkling that something weird was happening. He's just so quick with those hands.

So we're past the first drinks break of the Border-Gavaskar series on a spin-friendly pitch.

India brought in Ravindra Jadeja in the seventh over.

And Axar Patel in the eighth over

Still no R Ashwin tho. Or his clone

Marnus Labuschagne, on his first tour of India, has just got to 50 balls faced (and 15 runs scored) with an 87% control of his strokes.

Steven Smith, at the other end, has got through half that, with 6 off 26 and 77% control of his strokes.

Australia 29 for 2 after 14 overs

Alex Malcolm, our reporter on tour: Steve Smith's revamped technique is being taken for a spin in India for the first time. He has talked at length about making changes in the second half of 2021. He has moved his stance more side-on and has limited his trigger movement. He has also adjusted his bottom-hand grip. It is more conventional and less underneath the bat, meaning he is presenting a straighter bat face when defending and driving as opposed to the closed face that he was previously. It is all in a bid to access the offside more and hit straighter with more power. It worked superbly in the home summer in all forms. But he still has the ability to adjust on the fly. He went to his exaggerated back and across movement against South Africa in Sydney for a period because the conditions demanded it. He will adjust on the run in India depending on what is needed.

George Binoy, our India editor has similar thoughts: A first look at Smith's new technique in India and he seems so different. That square-on stance has gone, he's much more side-on now. That trigger movement back and across his stumps that made him able to play almost anything into the leg side is also reduced, he's much more still in his crease. The skill in those hands, like when he played that cover drive off Shami in the fifth over, is very much present. Waiting to see if his exaggerated reactions after he defends a ball are still part of his game.

From the mind of Shiva Jayaraman, one of the best statters in the game.

Mohammed Siraj got Usman Khawaja lbw with DRS, but he is a notoriously bad reviewer of umpire’s decisions. Out of the 20 times he had convinced his captain to take a review in all international cricket before this Test, only twice had the umpire’s decision been overturned. That’s a success percentage of just 10% before this Test. Of the 27 bowlers since Siraj’s debut to take 20 or more reviews in international cricket before this Test, Siraj’s success rate was the joint worst.

India sprung the leg trap on Smith in Australia and they seem to be going the same way here. Everything is on middle. Everything is full. And it aaaallllmost worked. Very late swing from Shami into the bat, almost had him lbw. Smith is falling over but those hands of his are just so quick to adjust and in the end he actually middles a ball that he looked second favourite to play

At the other end, Labuschagne is learning to defend a little lower because the bounce here isn't like back home at the Gabba. For what its worth, he's adjusted pretty quickly after being beaten in the first over he faced. This is the partnership that Australia will be relying on all series. And so far, they're taking good care to protect their wickets. High intensity Test cricket right now. Really high intensity.

So the first wicket of a series that will be dominated by spin is to a fast bowler. Mohammed Siraj has developed a reputation for being a serious threat with the new ball. He's able to move it conventionally and both ways. And when that conventional movement goes away, he switches to wobble-seam. Here, there is just enough movement to keep going conventional. Goes full. Goes straight. That's what India's quicks do so well in pitches like there. They always attack the stumps. They know edges aren't the priority here. It's hitting the stumps. It's hitting the pads. Siraj hits Khawaja's pads. The umpire doesn't think it's out but India go DRS and get the wicket.

Six balls later, a Mohammed Shami special takes out David Warner. Once again he comes for the stumps. On an in-between length. To a batter who's still new at the crease. So the shot is tentative. The footwork is missing. The seam movement into the left-hander makes those understandable errors look worse. It's an unplayable ball, really.

This is all happening with India's best fast bowler still out injured. It's all happening on a pitch which is suppose to assist spin. Siraj, Shami, Umesh, Ishant - the support act to the headliners like Bumrah and Ashwin and Jadeja - they deserve a little more love than they get because they get the basics so spot on. They know they won't get a lot of movement here. So to weaponise whatever movement they get - and perhaps its staying lower than batters from Australia might expect it to - they go straight

In the 2021 Ashes, Travis Head was in the form of his life. Then he got Covid and someone else came into the team and did exceedingly well. Soon as Head recovered though, he was straight back in the team and scored a match-winning century that earned him the Man of the Match award.

Australia trusted him back then. But here's the caveat - all those games were played at home.

In 2022, Head went to Sri Lanka and Pakistan and struggled: 8, 23, 11*, 26, 6, 5, 12.

Here's Alex Malcolm from the ground: Travis Head has been a dominant batter in the last two home Test summers for Australia but in between he struggled in both Pakistan and Sri Lanka. It put Australia's selectors in a bind. Back him in in all conditions or go horses for courses like they do with the bowling attack? They have been wanting to do the latter for awhile and have finally been brave enough to do it. It is an incredibly bold call. But Head's defensive and attacking skills against spin in Indian conditions are nowhere near Matt Renshaw's and Peter Handcomb's. This is why Head has been left out.

Pat Cummins has an incredible record of winning tosses as Australia Test captain, with seven of his last eight and nine of 13 overall so far falling in his favour. AND HE'S DONE IT AGAIN!

Australia are batting in Nagpur. Big advantage on a turning pitch. One that is an active threat against left-handers, so they've dropped a left-hander - and it's a big one - Travis Head - out of the XI

India: 1 Rohit Sharma (capt), 2 KL Rahul, 3 Cheteshwar Pujara, 4 Virat Kohli, 5 Suryakumar Yadav, 6 KS Bharat (wk), 7 Ravinda Jadeja, 8 R Ashwin, 9 Axar Patel, 10 Mohammed Shami, 11 Mohammed Siraj

Australia: 1 David Warner, 2 Usman Khawaja, 3 Marnus Labuschagne, 4 Steven Smith, 5 Matt Renshaw, 6 Peter Handscomb, 7 Alex Carey (wk), 8 Pat Cummins (capt), 9 Nathan Lyon, 10 Todd Murphy, 11 Scott Boland

So that means no Shubman Gill? Or has KL Rahul been dumped out of the Indian XI after captaining them in the last game?

What we know for sure is that former India coach Ravi Shastri has presented a first Test cap to Suryakumar Yadav and Cheteshwar Pujara gave it out to KS Bharat. From the first of those selections, it looks like the team is expecting this to be a low-scoring Test and are leveraging Surya's ability to attack every ball and score quick runs over someone who bats time (because well its not going to be easy to bat time here).

Australia have brought in Todd Murphy. He receives his cap from Nathan Lyon with his family watching.