India vs Australia 2023

'India inching towards victory'- Fans impressed with India's batting as they take 144-run lead at stumps on day 2

Fans are mighty impressed with India's batting as they take 144-run lead at stumps on day 2 against Australia in Nagpur.

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Rohit Kumar
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Rohit Sharma

Rohit Sharma: (Image Source: Twitter)

The end of day 2 has put India in the pole position when it comes to the first test match of the Border Gavaskar Trophy. The unbeaten partnership between Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel for the eighth wicket has made India a strong favorite to reach the World Test Championship finals as well.

Indian batting order showed a strong determination and applied themselves on the pitch on the second day as well. On a pitch where other premier batsmen struggled to score, Rohit Sharma continued his sublime batting. He not only scored a prolific century but also became the first ever captain in Indian colors to score a century across all formats.

Starting the day from 77 for the loss of KL Rahul, Rohit Sharma and Ravichandran Ashwin played out the first session of the day precariously. Though Ashwin departed at an individual score of 23, Rohit Sharma kept on scoring runs on the other end. At lunch, India were 151 for the loss of three wickets.

In the post lunch session, India lost Virat Kohli and Suryakumar Yadav cheaply and suddenly the score read 168/5. Virat Kohli's struggle in the test format continued as he was dismissed for a paltry 12 runs. Rohit Sharma stood tall at the other end to register his first test century as an Indian skipper. However, Rohit Sharma and debutant Srikar Bharat fell soon after tea.

Australia were happy but their happiness was short lived as Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel took the matter to their hands. On a pitch which was termed "not suitable" for left handers, both scored an unbeaten half century to stretch India's lead to 144 at the end of the day.

Ravindra Jadeja was at 66* and Axar Patel was on 52* when the umpires called the stumps. Australia will repent for giving two lifelines for Ravindra Jadeja. Steve Smith, on both occasions, had dropped the catch. Even on the penultimate ball, Steve Smith had an opportunity to dismiss Jadeja but he failed to complete the catch. India will look to stretch the lead on Day 3 before inviting Australia to bat for the second time.

Here's a look at fans reacted:ย 

IND vs AUS