Twitter Reactions: India in control after hard-fought first day in 2nd Test

India are in control of the second Test after a much better showing from the Australian batters.

By Chaitanya Prakash

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3 Min Read

Indian Cricket team
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Indian Cricket team. (Photo Source: BCCI)

The opening day of the second Test between India and Australia saw another action-filled contest between the top two Test sides in the world at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi. Indian openers KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma negated a few nervy moments after Australia posted 263 runs on the board, thanks to half-centuries from Usman Khawaja and Peter Handscomb.

Australian skipper Pat Cummins won the toss for the second time in the series and decided to bat first on a spicy surface in Delhi. The visitors opted for three spinners for the second Test, with the pitch expected to turn from the get-go. The visitors made a decent start to the game, despite a few streaky boundaries.

However, Mohammed Shami ended David Warner's dogged innings with a beautiful delivery. Following Warner's dismissal, Usman Khawaja and Marnus Labuschagne consolidated with a decent stand for the second wicket. Australia were looking to head into Lunch without any further casualties, but Ravichandran Ashwin had other ideas.

The veteran offie dismissed Labuschagne with a traditional off break which spun after drifting away from the batter. Catastrophe struck for the Aussies when Steve Smith departed without troubling the scorers in the same over as Australia lost two of their best batters in the space of three deliveries before the break.

Travis Head, whose omission in the Test series opener caused a huge uproar in the Australian media, could not make much of an impact with the bat on his return to the side. However, Khawaja found an able partner in Peter Handscomb as the duo stitched together a steady partnership to take the attack to the Indian bowlers.

But the Australian opener succumbed after a spectacular grab by KL Rahul in the point region. Khawaja's dismissal was Ravindra Jadeja's 250th Test scalp and was followed by another wicket in Ravi Ashwin's next over as Alex Carey walked back after a five-ball duck. Australia were in danger of getting bowled out before breaching the 200-run mark, but skipper Pat Cummins kept the Indian bowlers at bay with a solid stand with Handscomb.

Cummins was trapped plumb in front by Jadeja, which prompted Handscomb to shift gears. However, he eventually ran out of partners as Australia's innings ended on a score of 263 runs. While Jadeja and Ashwin shared six wickets between them, Shami starred with four wickets to his name.

Here is how Twitter reacted to an intriguing contest between bat and ball on the opening day of the second Test:

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