First test’s end in under 2 years ended with a loss for Australia by an innings and 132 runs. Pat Cummins saw his side bowled out for 91 in one session as the Indian spinners ran rampant. 7 wickets were shared between Ashwin and Jadeja as Axar Patel picked 1. The early end to the game was expected as the Australian techniques on such pitches were exposed long ago. Since the match got over early, Australia wanted to put in some extra work in the main pitch and this is what happened.
Ground’s man reply to Australian request –
Andrew McDonald told the Australian media that he wanted to put his team to the test in the center wicket. This was hours after the visiting side were bundled out for 91. McDonald asked for the ground’s man to let them practice on the main wicket to which he was told that the watering of the pitch had already begun the previous day at the end of the game.
Australia coach takes veiled dig at Indian strategy –
The pitch debate which started days before the start of the game continued after the royal thrashing in the 1st test. Coach Andrew McDonald continued the war of the words and said "It's pretty clear isn't it, their intent with the surfaces they want to play on. We were expecting that coming in so as I said before, we've been really clear on what we expected,"
More nets planned for Australian team –
As per what Andrew McDonald has said, there is a chance that more nets could be the order of the day for Australia. The coach has asked his wards to put in more work in what he called the “Naughty boy Nets” . speaking to the media the Australian coach said “When we got here we got exactly that. They're not naughty boy nets today (the planned session). We've got a big squad of 17 players so there are different people on different training programs. There'll be a couple of players from the game that will come down, so they'll be seen at training. But it's certainly not naughty boy nets, it's just preparing for the next game”
Huge changes likely for Australia –
In a bold move, David Warner who is going through a rough patch in test cricket may face the axe. The veteran left hander who just scored a double ton recently was at sea in both the innings. Warner, fell to Shami in the 1st innings, while was out LBW to Ashwin in the 2nd. It is expected that Travis Head could come into the XI and new spinner Matthew Kuhnemann could come in for Matt Renshaw. The 2nd test is scheduled to start on Friday at the Arun Jaitley stadium in New Delhi. The visitors await another trial by fire by the spinners during the 2nd test.