India vs Australia 2nd Test | Ashwin, Umesh give India upper hand

Melbourne, December 28: R Ashwin dismissed Marnus Labuschagne at the stroke of tea as India gained upper hand over Australia on the third day of the second Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground here on Monday (December 28).

At tea, Australia were 65/2 with Steve Smith and Matthew Wade holding fort for them. Umesh Yadav had ousted Joe Burns at the beginning of Australia's second essay.

However, there was a scare for India as Umesh Yadav went back to pavilion after stopping mid-way through his run-up, raising an injury concern. Mohammed Siraj completed the over. A confirmation is awaited on Umesh.

Earlier in the day, resuming day three from 277/5, India (/topic/india) got off to a decent start but just when things appeared to be going well for the visitor, skipper Ajinkya Rahane got run out while attempting a risky single.

Meanwhile, Ravindra Jadeja hit his 15th half-century as India (/topic/india) extended their lead by 100 runs. However, in order to add some quick runs, Jadeja went for the big shot off Mitchell Starc but found Pat Cummins in the deep.

Umesh and Ashwin then stitched a brief stand of 19 runs before India lost their third wicket of the day. Nathan Lyon dismissed Umesh in the 114th over.

With the intent of scoring quick runs, the visitor started losing wickets at quick intervals and slipped from 294/6 to 326/10. But India had managed to gain a significant first-innings lead of 131 runs. On day two, Rahane and Jadeja had put India in the drivers' seat against Australia at stumps.

The host might have scalped wickets of India's top-order, but in the final session of day two, Rahane and Jadeja showed grit and determination to give India firm control of the match. On day one, India had bundled out Australia for 195 as Jasprit Bumrah scalped four wickets while Ashwin took three wickets.

Brief Scores: India: 326 (Ajinkya Rahane 112, Ravindra Jadeja 57; Mitchell Starc 3/78) vs Australia: 195 and 65/2 (Marnus Labuschagne 28, Matthew Wade 27 n.o., Umesh Yadav 1/5).