India make a spirited reply

After Cameron Green lit up the scene with his maiden Test hundred on Friday, it was the turn of another gifted youngster to headline on Saturday.

Shubman Gill, all of 23, produced his first Test ton in India, and the second of his career following the one in Bangladesh late last year, in only the third innings after he replaced a struggling KL Rahul on popular demand.

Overnight 36/0 but still 444 runs in arrears to Australia's first innings total of 480, India rode Gill's century to finish the third day of the fourth and final Test at 289/3 in 89 overs, and reduce the deficit to 191 runs here at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Saturday.

Along the way, Gill stitched meaningful partnerships with his overnight companion Rohit Sharma (35), Cheteshwar Pujara (42) and Virat Kohli (59 n.o.) to keep at bay the Aussie attack which employed various tricks to break open the Indian line-up. Kohli and Jadeja (16 n.o.), who have added 58 runs for the unfinished fourth-wicket stand, were keeping vigil at stumps.

India not only needed Rohit and Gill to survive the morning session but also keep the score board moving at a fast clip. Resuming from where they had left, Rohit and Gill did exactly that as India gathered 93 runs in the first session in 27 overs. The duo did survive some anxious moments even as they kept finding boundaries. While the experienced Nathan Lyon was enterprising, fellow off-spinner Todd Murphy and left-armer Matt Kuhnemann created some doubts.

Paceman Mitchell Starc tried the short-ball trap without success but Australia drew the first blood against the run of play. Skipper Rohit, looking as good as he could, punched Kuhnemann's innocuous delivery straight into the hands of Marnus Labuschagne at short cover. Yes, the ball did stop a bit but Rohit was well set to readjust his shot.

Pujara, as is his wont, lent the much-required solidity but the scoring rate came down. While India were understandably cautious, Steve Smith's attempt to dry up the runs with a 7-2 field also slowed down the game. Even as India began reconstructing the innings, Gill went through a brief but probing spell from Lyon during which he also survived a review for LBW.

Australia's defensive fields plus the slowness of the pitch kept the Indians quiet longer than they would have liked to but it was essential for them to remain patient and wait for the right opportunity to score. And Green, perhaps the weakest link in their bowling, obliged and both the batsmen picked up boundaries off him to regain some momentum.

The partnership grew in strength between the two contrasting yet complementing batters who appeared to see through the middle session without any damage. Out of the blue, Todd Murphy struck when Pujara left the gap and the ball went with the angle to hit his front pad. DRS upheld on-field umpire's decision - it would have hit the middle stump. That ended the 113-run stand just an over before the tea break when Kohli could have been out three times in fours balls.

The former skipper, however, weathered the early storm to compile his first half-century in 15 months. His last fifty, a similarly workmanlike 79, came against South Africa in Cape Town in January last when he was still the Test captain. After struggling to adjust to the pace of the ball and assessing the spin (or the lack of it), the right-hander settled into nice rhythm, picking up a few typically elegant boundaries.

Gill-Kohli association was growing dangerously when Lyon (who else?) calmed the Aussie nerves. The senior off-spinner tossed one up in air and Gill made the mistake of playing it on the back foot deep inside the crease but he couldn't bring down the bat in time to block the ball which rapped on his pad. Gill did review the on-field decision only to know he would have rearranged his woodwork.