India produced an emphatic performance on Day 3 of the second Test, taking nine Australian wickets inside the first session and then chasing down before tea to take an unassailable 2-0 lead in the four-match series in Delhi. India all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja ran through the Australian batting order as the visitors fell like a pack of cards, starting the day from 61-1 to being bowled out on 113 on the third day of the Test.
Jadeja registered career-best figures of 7/42, while Ravichandran Ashwin also picked three wickets as India registered a phenomenal win at the Arun Jaitley Stadium. The side chased down the target with 6 wickets to spare, with Cheteshwar Pujara top-scoring with an unbeaten 31.
Australia made a poor start losing Travis Head (43) on the sixth ball of the morning as Ashwin had Head caught behind with Srikar Bharat pouching a smart catch. Marnus Labuschagne (35) and Steve Smith (9) added 20 runs for the third wicket in the calmest passage of play for the tourists. Ashwin trapped Smith LBW at the end of the 19th over, and the decision stayed in India’s favor despite the batsman opting for DRS.
Labuschagne was the next to go, bowled off Jadeja two overs later, as the ball kept low. His dismissal opened the floodgates as Australia collapsed from 95-3 to 95-7 in the space of 11 balls. Jadeja secured his 12 five-wicket haul in the longest format of the game, and also clinched a 10-wicket haul in the match, conceding 110 runs. His previous innings best was 7/49 against England in 2016.
In the run-chase, India lost the early wicket of KL Rahul as the opener failed to make an impression yet again, falling on 1. Rohit Sharma, then, scored a quickfire 31 before a miscommunication with Cheteshwar Pujara led to his run out. Pujara eventually remained unbeaten on 31 to take India to victory, and also hit the winning runs.
Kohli, meanwhile, also became the fastest batter to reach 25,000 international runs en route to his 20-run knock in the second innings. He surpassed Sachin Tendulkar for the feat, who had reached the mark in 577 innings.
India have thus retained the Border-Gavaskar Trophy and taken a step closer to the final of the World Test Championship, that takes place from June 7-11 at The Oval.
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