Australia captain Steve Smith took a sharp catch to snare India’s first wicket after scoring a big century to fire his side to a mammoth first-innings total of 530 on day two of the third Test in Melbourne yesterday.
Standing in for the injured Michael Clarke, Smith scored a personal best 192 to anchor a stunning tail-end assault on India’s bowlers, who leaked 314 runs for the final five wickets at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
Returning to the field after tea, the 25-year-old ended a 55-run opening partnership by diving low at second slip to catch an edge from Shikhar Dhawan (28) off the bowling of Ryan Harris.
Photo: EPA
Opener Murali Vijay (55 not out) and No. 3 batsman Cheteshwar Pujara (25 not out) pushed India to 108-1 at stumps, still 422 runs adrift of the hosts’ total.
The tourists were lucky not to be two wickets down, with wicketkeeper Brad Haddin spilling an edge from Pujara when the batsman was on 12.
Vijay’s unbeaten half-century, his fourth knock over 50 in the series, gives India some hope of reeling in the total on the benign drop-in wicket.
Photo: AFP
However, Smith’s third century from three Tests has all but sealed the four-match series for Australia, who lead 2-0.
Smith smashed 15 boundaries and two sixes to all corners of the sun-bathed ground, before falling short of a maiden double-century when attempting an audacious ramp shot off paceman Umesh Yadav.
Smith’s wicket brought the innings to a close and he walked off at tea to a standing ovation from the crowd of more than 51,000.
Smith and Haddin had resumed in the morning with Australia still vulnerable on 259-5, but plundered 67 runs before the wicketkeeper dismissed himself with a botched leave that bottom-edged through to India captain and wicketkeeper Mahendra Singh Dhoni.
Mitchell Johnson struck a quickfire 28 before he was stumped attempting to slog Ravichandran Ashwin down the ground, before bulky paceman Ryan Harris joined in the run feast, belting a personal best of 74 and raising raucous cheers from the terraces after registering his third Test half-century.
He slogged a big six to reach 74 and was out next ball, trapped leg before wicket by Ashwin, but by then Australia were 482-8 and in complete command.
Mohammed Shami bowled Nathan Lyon for 11, before Yadav wrapped up the innings with Smith’s wicket.
Bologna on Thursday advanced past Empoli to reach their first Coppa Italia final in more than half a century. Thijs Dallinga’s 87th-minute header earned Bologna a 2-1 win and his side advanced 5-1 on aggregate. Giovanni Fabbian opened the scoring for Bologna with a header seven minutes in. Then Viktor Kovalenko equalized for Empoli in the 30th minute by turning in a rebound to finish off a counterattack. Bologna won the first leg 3-0. In the May 14 final in Rome, Bologna are to face AC Milan, who eliminated city rivals Inter 4-1 on aggregate following a 3-0 win on Wednesday. Bologna last reached the
If the Wild finally break through and win their first playoff series in a decade, Minnesota’s top line likely will be the reason. They were all over the Golden Knights through the first two games of their NHL Western Conference quarter-finals series, which was 1-1 going back to Minnesota for Game 3 today. The Wild tied the series with a 5-2 win on Tuesday. Matt Boldy had three goals and an assist in the first two games, while Kirill Kaprizov produced two goals and three assists. Joel Eriksson Ek, who centers the line, has yet to get on the scoresheet. “I think the biggest
From a commemorative jersey to a stadium in his name, Argentine soccer organizers are planning a slew of tributes to their late “Captain” Pope Francis, eulogized as the ultimate team player. Tributes to the Argentine pontiff, a lifelong lover of the game, who died on Monday at the age of 88, have been peppered with soccer metaphors in his homeland. “Francisco. What a player,” the Argentine Football Federation (AFA) said, describing the first pope from Latin America and the southern hemisphere as a generational talent who “never hogged the ball” and who showed the world “the importance of having an Argentine captain,
Noelvi Marte on Sunday had seven RBIs and hit his first career grand slam with a drive off infielder Jorge Mateo, while Austin Wynn had a career-high six RBIs as the Cincinnati Reds scored their most runs in 26 years in a 24-2 rout of the Baltimore Orioles. Marte finished with five hits, including his eighth-inning homer off Mateo. Wynn hit a three-run homer in the ninth off catcher Gary Sanchez. Cincinnati scored its most runs since a 24-12 win against the Colorado Rockies on May 19, 1999, and finished with 25 hits. Baltimore allowed its most runs since a 30-3 loss to
RSS