Border Gavaskar Trophy, 1st Test: An Analytical Preview of Day 2


image-ldx1ai8pIndian team in the first Test of the Border Gavaskar Trophy 2023 (Source: AP Newsroom)

The first Test of the Border Gavaskar Trophy 2023 is on the way. The first day of the series has been action packed and if the saying - 'Morning shows the day is to be believed', this is going to be an exciting and entertaining series. 

Day 1 Highlights

Australian Openers Falling Cheaply: The Indian bowlers were right on the money from the very beginning and got the Australian's reeling at 2 for 2. It was expected that India will get a stronghold on the match from hereon. But Steve Smith and Marnus Labuschagne had something different in their minds. 

Smith-Marnus to Australia's rescue: Steve Smith (37 off 107) and Marnus Labuschagne (49 off 123) added 82 runs for the third wicket and stabilised the Australian ship. It was looking like the duo are getting adjusted to the condition and will take the visitors well past a par total. 

India's comeback with a flurry of wickets: While the Australian duo was showing grit, the Indian bowlers did not relent in their efforts, and this soon paid off. Marnus was the third wicket to fall for Australia and henceforth they lost eight wickets for just 93 runs. India was able to bundle the visitors out for just 177 runs in the first innings. 

Ravindra Jadeja was the prime architect of the Aussie destruction with five wickets for 47 runs in his 22 overs.

Rohit Sharma's aggressive batting: The Indian opening duo of KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma gave India a solid start with the Indian skipper playing the role of an aggressor. He brought up his half-century in just 66 balls and gave KL the time to settle down at the other end. It was looking like India will end the day without the loss of a single wicket. 

Todd Murphy's maiden Test wicket: But Todd Murphy, the debutant and the best of the Australian bowlers for the day managed to dismiss KL Rahul (20 off 71) in the second last over and draw the first blood. The hosts sent out Ravichandran Ashwin to bat next as the 'nightwatchman' and ended the day 77 for 1, exactly 100 runs behind the Australian total. 

image-ldx0wb10(Source: OneCricket)


Expectations for Day 2

India's possible plan

The numbers show us that probably the easiest session to bat was the first one. Though in the second session the runs scored were more they came at the cost of quite a few wickets. So, the Indian team will look to capitalise on it tomorrow. They will try to preserve the wickets in the first session while maintaining a decent run rate. Rohit Sharma will be playing a key role India's batting approach tomorrow. 

image-ldx17ekaRohit Sharma will be key to India's fate in the match (Source: AP Newsroom)

The target in the Indian team management would be ideally around 300, beyond which they will treat each run as a bonus. A lead of 100 plus is what the Indians will look to achieve and that should give the home side a big advantage. 

Australia's possible plan

The Australian bowlers erred in their length today. They bowled too full and it is a given that while reflecting on the day's play they will come across it. Tomorrow we might see a changed and a better bowling plan by the Aussies. They will look to make run scoring difficult for the Indian batters and apply pressure in the process. The ideal scenario for them would be to bundle out India as soon as possible and then try and post a difficult target on the board. 

image-ldx1933cTodd Murphy will be a key cog in the Australian bowling machinery on Day 2 (Source: AP Newsroom)

The key player for Australia tomorrow might turn out to be the debutant, Todd Murphy. 

Expectations from Day 2

  1. A lot of overs from the spinners.
  2. Rohit Sharma's batting determining the fate of India in the match.
  3. The Australians making a comeback of sorts and making the scenario interesting. 

Altogether an exciting day of Test cricket awaits us. Stay tuned and enjoy our Live Blog of the match.