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Rahkeem Cornwall makes it to West Indies Test squad
He is an all-rounder from the islands of Antigua and is perhaps the heaviest cricketer ever. He stands at a towering height of 6’6” and weighs around 140 kg.

Cornwall made his first-class debut in 2014 and has since become a regular for Leewards Islands, even captaining them earlier this year. He has 260 wickets from 55 first-class matches and finished as the leading bowler in the most recent regional four-day tournament.

Does seem unfair Shami has nothing yet. Happens sometimes.

Fifty for Paine They needed that from the skipper.

Still 93 behind. Lot of work to do...

50 for Paine. Captain's innings. And Australia have crossed 150. Paine would be hoping to at the least, get the lead down to less than 50.

Sidejacking this to note that the SA Sri Lanka test series is in danger of becoming a farce, currently SA only have 5 players confirmed available of their squad and that assumes they manage to avoid contact with anyone infected till the game starts.

A catch taken for a change and Ashwin gets his Australian counterpart. At 167-9, Paine might just now would want to throw his bat at a few to try and get close.

India now getting into the mode of not trying to get Paine out. Silly strategy, he kept Hazlewood away from strike for 4 balls, and the number 11 that he really isn't the seamer was then able to safely manage the last 2 deliveries from Shami.

The skipper now taking the single on offer first ball and Hazlewood smashing Ashwin down the ground for 4 next ball. Kohli's batting was brilliant in this test, but his captaincy hasn't been not much better than India's catching!

msp - have you seen the tipping competition thread?

My comments on today's play later.

Very valuable late order runs from Paine and the tail - first innings lead of 53, when at one point it was looking like 100+

Keeps the Aussies more than in this game. India have the chance to bat them out of it here though, big test for the openers...

Well that's a bit of a pickle for Australia. Some very poor dismissals in that innings, though Smith got a good ball and there wasn't a lot Labuschagne could have done with one that kept low. Credit to Paine for keeping his side in the contest.

Going to take an inspired effort from Australia's bowlers to turn this test back around. They certainly can't let India develop a lead of more than 250 but, ideally, they need to keep it under the 200 mark.

Wouldve got good odds on Paine being the highest first innings scorer! Dont think its fair to critisize a captain for wanting to bowl at the number 11 when the senior bat is on 60 something and scoring freely. Hazelwood didnt last long when they next got to bowl at him but Paine wracked up the runs when he was facing.

Surprisingly low scoring game, solid lead for India but still a game thats open for sure.

alfie wrote:

KP_fan wrote:

msp83 wrote:At 92-5, Australia surely in trouble. But Labuschagne is still there, and they have Cummins and Starc to come, they both are good enough to bat 1 position up on a pinch than what they are doing currently.

yeah their tail is much better than Indian tail....and they will scramble and get close to the Indian total
It will be a single inning shoot out

You think ?  I agree their pace bowlers are far better with the bat than India's (not a high bar !) but I'm not sure I'd call them a "strong" 8-11.
Paine is still there , and he is a punchy fighter ; but I think they will struggle to get near 200

And as I type Cummins collects a duck...

Aus's 7 thru 11 added 110 runs
India's 7 thru 11 only 34 runs

Told ya......Shaw ain't cut out for this level

Ah, Cummins is so, so good.

India send out a night watchman with a test batting average of 3....doesn't sound too wise! Wouldn't Ashwin have been better?

Duty281 wrote:Ah, Cummins is so, so good.

India send out a night watchman with a test batting average of 3....doesn't sound too wise! Wouldn't Ashwin have been better?

If you're sending out a nightwatchman after 3 overs...why didn't you just send him out to start the innings? Baffling move to me

(Replying to KP_fan)

Ah yes ...but I was referring to the bowlers , not the keepers. Note the quote : 8-11.

Anyway , I'm not sure 53 is really "close" in a low scoring game like this one ?

Interesting point : yes Paine got them maybe thirty runs closer than might have been ...but on the other hand that meant India were left with only six overs to bat under lights. If they only lose Shaw (big if , perhaps   ) they might feel better off than having a lead of say ninety and a prolonged ordeal in the difficult conditions...

One over left at Bumrah.

Good Golly I'm Olly wrote:

Duty281 wrote:Ah, Cummins is so, so good.

India send out a night watchman with a test batting average of 3....doesn't sound too wise! Wouldn't Ashwin have been better?

If you're sending out a nightwatchman after 3 overs...why didn't you just send him out to start the innings? Baffling move to me

The proposition is a bit different when the batsman to be protected is Pujara / Kohli
Shaw and agarwal's half a job is to protect the Big 3 the other half being score runs for themselves and team

Depends what you think of night watchmen...

(calling Guildford )

He's done his job anyway. One only down , 62 ahead...India very much on top , though there is a lot of cricket left in this yet.

alfie wrote:(Replying to KP_fan)

Ah yes ...but I was referring to the bowlers , not the keepers. Note the quote : 8-11.

Anyway , I'm not sure 53 is really "close" in a low scoring game like this one ?

Interesting point : yes Paine got them maybe thirty runs closer than might have been ...but on the other hand that meant India were left with only six overs to bat under lights. If they only lose Shaw (big if , perhaps   ) they might feel better off than having a lead of say ninety and a prolonged ordeal in the difficult conditions...

One over left at Bumrah.

Yeah that 75 odd from the No. 7 changes the entire argument depending on whether you count him or not
And I was talking about the tail....which to me starts from No.7 for us

Lets monitor more specifically in coming innings....the spots 7 thru 11.
On a good day Saha will get your a 20 to 30 odd.....70+ is beyond his realms.

Although tomm Bumrah might surprise us and play the inning of his life of 18 runs and a 70 odd partnerhsip with Mayank

Strong day for India, their bowlers have turned this game back around. Australia need an inspired burst tomorrow from someone, wouldn't fancy their chances of chasing over 200 on this.

Well I'd be picking Pant , not Saha !

Bumrah probably played the innings of his life last week getting fifty in the warm up game and nearly killing Green with a return driven chance
He will do well to last three overs tomorrow I think.

Duty281 wrote:Strong day for India, their bowlers have turned this game back around. Australia need an inspired burst tomorrow from someone, wouldn't fancy their chances of chasing over 200 on this.

upwards of 200 is difficult but I would say upto 250 is chasable....for the same reason as I pointed out earlier
Aus is capable of putting 20 to 30 run parternerships all the way down to 10th wicket

India needs to match or better their first inning score to feel safe

Not going to write Australia off yet. If they can get at Pujara and Kohli early enough , who knows ? And a chase of even 250 might not be beyond them on what would be only a fourth day pitch...but that is getting well ahead of ourselves...

Right now the tourists should sleep better. Won't be able to watch this tomorrow (game of my own to play , and then the club Christmas party) but hope you all get to enjoy another interesting day

Chases of 250 or under will always feel vulnerable for sure. Just takes one partnership to really shift momentum in a low scoring test like this. India will want to eek out every run they can tomorrow, and I think the safety first approach which got questioned after day one has been well and truly shown to be the way they need to continue.

Good work by the nightwatchman, Kohli needs to show there was some point in protecting him tomorrow by making some runs.

alfie wrote:Well I'd be picking Pant , not Saha !

Bumrah probably played the innings of his life last week getting fifty in the warm up game and nearly killing Green with a return driven chance
He will do well to last three overs tomorrow I think.

¨

For the 2nd test now Saha will be under the scanner....he has to deliver a score of 30+ in second inning to be retained
Shaw is already out ....Gill will come in for him.....and Rahul or Rohit in for Kohli.

I think that 50 from Bumrah in the Tour game has given team management the confidence to send him as a Night watchman...and this act might give Bumrah the confidence to post his highest test score which would be achieved if he gets to 11

So At the end of day 2, it is slight advantage India despite all those drops. They are effectively 62-1. India got a 53 run lead, it could have been a bit more if they had held on to all those chances. Shaw failed to see the day through, was bowled by Cummins for 4. So that's 4 runs across 2 innings and a sitter dropped in his account so far.

guildfordbat wrote:msp - have you seen the tipping competition thread?

My comments on today's play later.

I had not quite figured it out Guildford. Thought I had to select my players prior to the start of the game?

KP_fan wrote:

alfie wrote:(Replying to KP_fan)

Ah yes ...but I was referring to the bowlers , not the keepers. Note the quote : 8-11.

Anyway , I'm not sure 53 is really "close" in a low scoring game like this one ?

Interesting point : yes Paine got them maybe thirty runs closer than might have been ...but on the other hand that meant India were left with only six overs to bat under lights. If they only lose Shaw (big if , perhaps   ) they might feel better off than having a lead of say ninety and a prolonged ordeal in the difficult conditions...

One over left at Bumrah.

Yeah that 75 odd from the No. 7 changes the entire argument depending on whether you count him or not
And I was talking about the tail....which to me starts from No.7 for us  

Lets monitor more specifically in coming innings....the spots 7 thru 11.
On a good day Saha will get your a 20 to 30 odd.....70+ is beyond his realms.

Although tomm Bumrah might surprise us and play the inning of his life of 18 runs and a 70 odd partnerhsip with Mayank

Bumrah just scored his only FC 50 in the practice game prior to the test, and even hit one back at Green that nearly took him out of this test! So, probably, seeing our batting issues, he has decided to turn into an all-rounder!

msp83 wrote:

guildfordbat wrote:msp - have you seen the tipping competition thread?

My comments on today's play later.

I had not quite figured it out Guildford. Thought I had to select my players prior to the start of the game?

Strictly you should have done but we're so pleased to have you and KP_f back, you should still be ok to get in.

Meanwhile, you were right about India struggling and failing to reach 250. They ended up 20 to 30 short of what I was expecting last night. Mind you, not totally shocked - Starc and Cummins are usually a handful against batters a lot better than your tail!

A subsequent mix of ordinary Australian batting and decent Indian bowling led by Ashwin have got your noses back in front but a late wicket at the end of day 2 and an inevitable early one at the start of day 3 (that's for Alfie!) will still make it tight.

Intriguing ....

guildfordbat wrote:

msp83 wrote:

guildfordbat wrote:msp - have you seen the tipping competition thread?

My comments on today's play later.

I had not quite figured it out Guildford. Thought I had to select my players prior to the start of the game?

Strictly you should have done but we're so pleased to have you and KP_f back, you should still be ok to get in.

Strictly speaking yes... but we can always leave the door open for you, msp. Maybe just post up your selections (we'll look the other away) and I can organise a spot for you.

Probably have to start you on around 299 points - then your superior cricket knowledge will start to kick in.
Just PM me or post your picks up on the thread if you want.

https://www.606v2.com/t69882-australia-v-india-test-series-tipping-competition

alfie wrote:Not going to write Australia off yet. If they can get at Pujara and Kohli early enough , who knows ?  And a chase of even 250 might not be beyond them on what would be only a fourth day pitch...but that is getting well ahead of ourselves...

Right now the tourists should sleep better. Won't be able to watch this tomorrow (game of my own to play , and then the club Christmas party) but hope you all get to enjoy another interesting day

Would agree, I'm not writing Australia off either. They took the last seven wickets for 50-odd in the first innings; something similar like that tomorrow would set us up for an excellent conclusion. And Smith and Labuschagne are more than capable of playing the defining innings of the test.

I bet Smith was up all night facing balls in the hotel corridor. The 'night manager' must have sore arms...

Pal Joey wrote:I bet Smith was up all night facing balls in the hotel corridor. The 'night manager' must have sore arms...

Is that a euphemism?

Gooseberry wrote:

Pal Joey wrote:I bet Smith was up all night facing balls in the hotel corridor. The 'night manager' must have sore arms...

Is that a euphemism?

Yes and no.

Cummins with the dream start, getting Bumrah and Pujara early to drag his team back into serious contention. Every ball's an event with this spell of bowling.

And now Hazlewood with his first ball captures Agarwal. India can't handle it this morning afternoon.

Get Kohli early and Australia will be favourites again.

Two in one over! Absolute carnage, Rahane gone this time. Good line and length and India can't do owt about it.

Kohli or bust for India. Test should be over today, that's a turn-up.

There's the big wicket, excellent catch, though not tidy, from Green low-down to dismiss Kohli.

Cummins 4/12.

Never mind Cummins' 4/12, Hazlewood takes two in two and has 4/3. And that was his 200th test wicket. And he's on a hat-trick.

India 26/8 and hopelessly beaten.

Ah...no hat-trick for Hazlewood.

India all out for 36, with Shami injured by a short-pitched ball and unable to continue.

Goodness, what a dream 90 minutes for Australia. And they'll need 90 to win.

We've had a few twists in this test, but surely no more.

Most certainly the most ruthless bowling effort I've ever seen in a Test. Don't think this particular Indian side deserves such a low point.
Cummins and Hazlewood bowled superbly though. India lost 5 wickets for 4 runs in 36 balls at one stage.

To make matters worse, Mo Shami is now in doubt with the ball after being struck on the arm by Cummins.

Wow... Flick on the cricket when you wake up and do not expect to see that! Incredible collapse from India. And how they have to bounce back in T2 without Kohli? Good luck!

Half awake at 6am I glanced at Cricifo on my phone
31-9 knocked out the sleep and also the desire to turn on the TV

this is the stuff that kills the morale of both fans & teams ....esp in the first game of the tour

I have never seen a captain take a break from 3 tests due to paternity
Tough ones go after the series
Nice ones go after the games
Very nice ones miss a test and come back

Ha wow ...got up a bit late to miss the India innings! This test was ridiculous. That first innings score is looking way over par now!

Actually having a hard time working out how India managed to implode so fully there. The pitch is not so fast or uneven as to make batting a lottery, and whilst Australia's quicks are extremely good its no different tow hat they faced in the first innings. All they needed to do was grind 200 runs between them to be firmly in control and the pressure was on Australia not them.

Really hard to know where they go from that collective brain fart. Tinkering with the openers and keeper wont make much odds either way, its clearly a phycological/team issue.

So that’s the series as a contest over - Duty’s 4-0 looking pretty damn good now providing the weather doesn’t intervene

The Burns and Wade stand although maybe a result of the pressure being off and Indias bowlers heads dropping is a huge sign of Australia too. Getting a 50 should be a massive confidence boost for Burns in particular given his awful form.

You needed to have watched it Gooseberry. Cummins and Hazlewood both bowled perfect lines and lengths and as Kohli said afterwards - they were "so accurate and just enough to find the edge" on quite a few occasions. It wasn't necessarily hostile (Shami moved into the line of that Cummins delivery when he got hit) but they were quick and extremely consistent... and on a roll.

What I found odd was the fact that given Adelaide Oval's history of being a good dry and hard batting track; this pitch was softer and had what looked like a decent layer of dried out grass on top - in other words it didn't wear out as much - but of course that was only after 2 & 1/2days.

Alfie might have an idea about the next one. I think they are expecting hot sunny days in Melbourne and they've had not nearly as much rain as in Sydney... and Brisbane... which has had a recent battering of storms and will likely get worse ones in January as the monsoon season (further north) intensifies in mid-late summer... and gets drawn over that SEQ coastal area.

It will be interesting to see what selection changes Australia will make if Warner is deemed fit to play. Do they drop Wade or Burns... or Green? Or move Wade down and drop Green? Would be harsh on the youngster after his first Test. Tough job being a selector.

As for India, it is even more difficult. Bring in Gill, drop Shaw? What about Rohit, KL Rahul, Pant and maybe even a back-up for Shami if he's not right? Might need to consider Ishant... although I'm not up to date on his current form and degree of favour with the Indian selectors.

Obviously I blame it on the decision to go with a nightwatchman.

guildfordbat wrote:Obviously I blame it on the decision to go with a nightwatchman.

Enjoyed your little cameo with Joe Burns, Guildford. Had a little smile for you as I entered his runs on the spreadsheet. You were the only person scoring points for a good part of the afternoon. That was a very brave pick and I'm glad it paid off for you.

Theres never an excuse to get bowled out that cheaply though. Lowest score in tests since 1955 when they were played on uncovered pitches and batting was optional for players 7 down. Its simply shouldn't happen regardless of how good the bowling was.

I think Green will play, Aus will want that 5th bowling option and long term its a role they really need to fill. Wade was abought in to "do a job" and just about managed it, but score of 8 and 33 hardly make him undroppable. Burns certainly deserves the spot more short and long term if they are going to give the other youngster the shot he had earned. Wades never really cut it as a test bat in any position and very much a place filler for the past year or so.

Indian selections should be based on a morale/attitude management issue now. Find the players who have fire in their eyes to right the wrongs rather than those sulking and feeling sorry for themselves or worried about what their sponsors think. There needs to be a degree of honesty in the Indian camp, the batting failed comprehensively in the second innings after the team had put them in a winning position. They need to be focused on what each player can do individually to lift the team for the next game rather than looking for ways to hide their own failure.

guildfordbat wrote:Obviously I blame it on the decision to go with a nightwatchman.

Maybe morning watchmen will become a thing!