Brisbane: Marnus Labuschagne rode his luck to a home-ground century as Australia exploited India’s injury woes and punished their poor fielding to reach 274 for five at the close of a steamy day one of the fourth test decider in Brisbane yesterday.
Captain Tim Paine was 38 not out and all-rounder Cameron Green on 28 at stumps, with Australia holding sway after winning the toss and batting on a Gabba pitch that flattened obligingly for the batsmen under a blazing sun.
It was a bad toss to lose for Ajinkya Rahane’s decimated side, shorn of pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah and spinner Ravichandran Ashwin, and stitched together with four injury-forced changes.
Selectors spread the load with a rookie four-prong pace attack, but it was soon a man down when seamer Navdeep Saini went off the field with a groin injury after lunch.
He exited straight after inducing a nick from Labuschagne that was dropped in the gully by Rahane when the batsman was on 37.
Labuschagne was then dropped on 48 before tea and duly made India pay in a 113-run partnership with Matthew Wade (45) before getting out slogging for 108.
India blew a third chance late in the day, with Green reprieved on 19 by paceman Shardur Thakur, who grassed a waist-high caught-and-bowled chance.
The home side were also wasteful, with four of their batsmen dismissed due to poor shot selection, and only opener David Warner (1) falling to a good ball when he nicked Mohammed Siraj to the slips in the first over.
Without a single first-choice bowler available – all sidelined or long since departed with injuries – India blooded two debutants in paceman T Natarajan and spin-bowling all-rounder Washington Sundar. Both the new boys had their moments.