Cricket

The idea that the Nagpur pitch had been prepared to target Australia's left-handers went untested as they found other, swifter ways to get out.

There is a long way to go in the match, but the only hand that mattered after the first day was the one that the home side holds: the upper one. That was the death knell for the innings, slipping from 109 for four to 177 all out. With no Mitchell Starc, no Ashton Agar and no Travis Head, the last of the left-handed brigade was Alex Carey. They looked set to do the same again, batting through from the early loss of the openers to beyond the lunch break, sweeping and counterattacking to add 82 between defensive periods. Within the first 13 balls of the match, Australia were 2 for 2, a score that means the same thing no matter what country you read it in. Nagpur’s strange chessboard of a pitch, watered and prepared in different sections that may or may not have been related to the relevant strengths and vulnerabilities of the Australian and Indian teams, eventually had to reveal how it was going to play.

Australia were skittled for just 177 on day one of the first Test against India in Nagpur, with spinner Ravindra Jadeja taking a five-wicket haul before ...

It gave me a lot of confidence to come here and play a Test match." "I was enjoying my bowling. And during the 16th over of his spell, an Australian fan spotted Jadeja approaching teammate Mohammed Siraj and appearing to take something off his hand. Never ever seen this …" Ex-England skipper Vaughan also weighed in, questioning what exactly Jadeja was doing. [India](https://www.mirror.co.uk/all-about/india-cricket-team) spinner Ravindra Jadeja has sparked debate after a clip was shared on social media, appearing to show him applying something to his finger, with the likes of [Tim Paine](https://www.mirror.co.uk/all-about/tim-paine) and [Michael Vaughan](https://www.mirror.co.uk/all-about/michael-vaughan) questioning what he was doing.

Australia openers Usman Khawaja and David Warner were gone within the first 13 deliveries. Marnus Labuschagne and Steve Smith fashioned an 82-run respite but ...

Seconds later, he used those fingers to rub either the inside of his opposing hand or the cricket ball itself. Their opinions turned out be the few negative ones amongst thousands in support of Jadeja. “I played test cricket after a long time and it is tough,” Jadeja said.