IND vs AUS Day 1 Talking Points: Khawaja's hundreds, Head and Green's attacking approach and more

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Australia took the honour on Day 1 of the fourth and final Test against India by accumulating 255 runs for the loss of four wickets only. For a change, a batting-friendly wicket was on offer and Australia made the most of it by winning the toss and opting to bat first at the humongous Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. The Australia batters have carried the confidence of an emphatic 9-wicket win in the third Test in Indore and they look to test the hosts in a match crucial for them. Notably, India need to win the Test to win the series 2-1 and qualify for the World Test Championship (WTC) final. If they lose, they would be hoping for Sri Lanka to lose one of their two Test matches against New Zealand.

IND vs AUS: Here are the important talking points from Day 1 of the fourth Test

Usman Khawaja hundred floors India

The Australian opener scored his 14th Test hundred - first against India - to keep his team on the top throughout the day. Despite others not capitalising on their starts, Khawaja kept his cool and kept on forging mini partnerships. He partnered for 61 runs with Travis Head for the opening wicket, 11 with Labuschagne, 79 off 248 balls with Steve Smith, 19 with Peter Handscomb and unbeaten 85-run partnership with Cameron Green.

He brought his hundred with a boundary in the final over of the day. The southpaw, who has now hit six hundreds since his comeback in January 2022, is the leading run-scorer in the ongoing series. He is the only batter in the series to score a hundred and two fifties. No other Australia batter has hit a hundred in the series which will end with the conclusion of the ongoing Test. Australia would be hoping Khawaja to add more handy runs to his unbeaten 104 runs on Friday.

Head and Green's attacking approach

Tarvis Head scored 32 runs with the help of seven boundaries during his 44-ball stay at the crease to set the tone for Australia. He partnered for 61 runs in just over 15 overs. He batted at a strike rate of 72.73. Labuschagne was dismissed for 3 off 20, Smith scored 38 off 135 and Handscomb scored 17 off 27. Head was dismissed by Ravichandran Ashwin.

Later in the day, Green took the aggressive route and scored 49 unbeaten runs off 64 balls. He has already hit eight boundaries in his first outing in Ahmedabad so far. His strike-rate on Day 1 was 76.56. The fast runs from these two batters did not allow the Indian bowlers to settle down and bowl in one area for a long duration.

Non-turning track for a change

All the three Test matches so far have ended inside three days. This won't be the case this time around. The old-style wicket for Test cricket in Indian conditions has been dished out in Ahmedabad. In a series where teams have got bundled out on Day 1, Australia lost just four wickets for 255 runs. Notably, in the first three Tests, only thrice had the teams collectively scored over 200 runs.

Batting has looked comparatively easy in Ahmedabad and a high-scoring contest is on cards most probably. The batters can apply themselves and settle in for big hundreds. India managed to pick just two wickets in the first season but such is the nature of the pitch that the effort was lauded by Sanjay Manjrekar. Spinners Ravindra Jadeja and Ashwin, the two leading wicket-takers in the series could manage a wicket each.