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India vs Australia, Live Cricket Score, 4th Test Day 1 in Sydney: Agarwal, Pujara Look to Build Partnership

Cricketnext Staff | Updated: January 3, 2019, 5:36 AM IST

4th Test, Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG), Sydney 03 - 07 January, 2019

Live Now : Toss won by India (decided to bat)

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05:35(IST)

And we have first change in the bowling as Pat Cummins comes for a bowl. And the very first ball he gets the ball to shape away from Agarwal. That wasn't far away from taking an edge. The good part is that Cummins is making the batsmen play. Agarwal has been playing some attractive straight drives in the V. In fact he ends the over with an exquisite cover drive. India are 30/1. 

05:30(IST)

Hazlewood has started to bring the ball into the batsman and that might just caused some problems for the batsmen. But Pujara will fight it out. That is brilliant fast bowling. India are 22/1. 

05:25(IST)

Both Pujara and Agarwal are keeping the run rate up. They have run well between the wickets till now. Clearly the Indians want to post a big total on this wicket as they move to 22/1. 

05:22(IST) MEANWHILE:
05:19(IST)

After that early first wicket, Pujara is certainly the right guy for the job right now. One thing for sure is he won't throw his wicket away. India move to 14/1. 

05:12(IST)

There is a lot of bounce on this wicket early on. But the sun is down and things will get better for the Indians. It's 10/1 after 2 overs. 

05:08(IST)

OUT: Hazlewood will start from the far end. Once again Rahul plays with soft hands as ball goes through the slips for four. And out. Rahul departs for 9 as Hazlewood bowls perfect line and Rahul edges. Marsh takes a simple catch. India are 10/1. 

05:04(IST)

FOUR: Rahul doesn't start very well as he plays it right through the slips. That could have been a catch, but the ball flies to the boundary. India are away. On the other hand Starc gets the ball to rise awkwardly and Agarwal misses. That's a brilliant first over. India are 6/0.  

05:00(IST)

Indian openers Mayank Agarwal and KL Rahul make way to the middle. Mitchell Starc to start the proceedings with the ball. 

04:54(IST)

Finally off to the stadium. Both teams line up for the national anthems. This should give the confidence to the Indian boys. We are now just moments away from the first ball being delivered. 

04:52(IST)

One of the greatest bowlers of the game, Shane Warne has laid bare the numbers that show the Australian bowlers are as much to blame for the poor performances as the batsmen, unlike what has been the narrative in recent months. The former skipper believes that it is the bowlers’ inability to dismiss oppositions which is making life harder for the batsmen.

04:45(IST)

Virat Kohli after winning the toss: We are gonna have a bit first. Looks like a pretty good wicket, good covering of grass on it. We have to play good, hard-fought cricket for the next five days. Rohit Sharma is back home. He's become a father which is a great thing. KL Rahul replaces him at the top of the order. Vihari comes in at six. Kuldeep Yadav comes in place of Ishant Sharma.

04:38(IST) STAT ATTACK:
04:36(IST)

TOSS: India have won the toss and opted to bat first. India have two forced changes. KL Rahul comes in for Rohit Sharma while Kuldeep Yadav comes in for injured Ishant Sharma. 

04:35(IST)

Australia (Playing XI): Marcus Harris, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Shaun Marsh, Peter Handscomb, Travis Head, Tim Paine(w/c), Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood


India (Playing XI): Lokesh Rahul, Mayank Agarwal, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli(c), Ajinkya Rahane, Hanuma Vihari, Rishabh Pant(w), Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Shami, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah

04:29(IST)
04:27(IST)

“Mere sath bhot nainsafi bhi hui hai (I went through great injustice). They knew I was passionate about cricket so I would take any position. Whenever it was my turn to bat, they would all just go home and I used to cry that they made me do everything but did not let me bat. It was frustrating at times, but with my cricket, he was committed in helping me in every way he could. The fitness freak that Kohli is, he suggested in one of the videos that his favourite form of exercise is resistance training as the form of exercise gives him the right amount of burn on the muscles.
​

04:22(IST)

"Obviously he was very important to me. He never compromised on any of my game and his efforts in that were massive. My father’s efforts as well but I think my brother ensured that none of the things were compromised.” However, Kohli also said he was left 'frustrated' a lot of times when he used to play with his brother and his friends as they would never let him bat. “I did not spend much time at home with him as he was doing his own set of things with his own set of friends. I remember I always wanted to be a part of their group because I felt that they were cooler. That curiosity used to be there but they never allowed me as I was too young," he said.

04:20(IST)

Kohli also spoke in length about the impact his older brother Vikas Kohli has had in his life. Although an age gap of seven years, Kohli said his brother in whatever little time he got made sure to take him around to the cricket games as a kid. “My brother is seven years elder to me. He was obviously involved in the business with my dad, but whenever I had a game, he made it a point to take me, watch the game or bring me back when I was really small. When I was older, I used to go by myself," Kohli said.

04:17(IST)

“If someone comes and starts saying things which are too respectful, I crack some joke and be like ‘itna bhi koi serious hone ki zarurat nahi hai’ (you don’t have to be this serious also). So I try to make them comfortable immediately. Because I like the idea of people opening up. "I don’t like the idea of not speaking up or not knowing what's going on. We should be organic and that’s the way I like it.”

04:14(IST)

Virat Kohli has revealed that he cannot relate himself to being a senior in the Indian side insisting he tries to create an atmosphere within the side such that everyone can open up and be 'organic' in their approach. “In all honesty, I cannot behave like a senior. I can’t do it even when someone gives me a lot of respect. I can’t relate to myself as a senior cricketer," said Kohli in a video on his official app 'Virat Kohli'.

04:04(IST)

It's time for the fourth and final Test between India and Australia at the iconic SCG. India come into the match with a 2-1 lead and have a chance to create history by winning the first ever series in Australia, whereas the home side would like to keep their record intact. Hello and welcome to the live blog for the first day. 

India vs Australia, Live Cricket Score, 4th Test Day 1 in Sydney: Agarwal, Pujara Look to Build Partnership

(Twitter/BCCI)

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Live updates:And we have first change in the bowling as Pat Cummins comes for a bowl. And the very first ball he gets the ball to shape away from Agarwal. That wasn't far away from taking an edge. The good part is that Cummins is making the batsmen play. Agarwal has been playing some attractive straight drives in the V. In fact he ends the over with an exquisite cover drive. India are 30/1.

Follow our live cricket scores between of the first day of the fourth and final Test between India and Australia through our live blog.

Preview: When a team is leading 2-1 in a country where they have never won a series in nearly seven decades of trying, you would expect it to be a well-oiled, finely-tuned machine. You would expect stability and a settled look. India are anything but. The latest round of uncertainty emerged in Sydney on the eve of the final Test against Australia with India’s media spokesperson opening Virat Kohli’s press conference by stating that R Ashwin had not recovered fully from his abdominal strain and was ruled out of the final Test of the series. Less than two hours later the same spokesperson issued an update, saying that Ashwin was included in the 13-man squad from which the playing eleven would be picked. Interestingly, Ravindra Jadeja and Kuldeep Yadav, the other two spinners in the squad of 18, were also included in the thirteen. Ishant Sharma, who was excellent in the previous Test, was excluded though there was no clarity on why that was. Only later did the management release a statement that Ishant had, in fact, sustained an injury and the team was not willing to risk him for the final Test. "Ishant is experiencing some left rib cage discomfort and the team management did not want to risk him during this Test match. He is currently being assessed," read the statement from BCCI.

Umesh Yadav, who was dropped for the Melbourne Test, was back in the thirteen that included Mohammed Shami. If anyone looked doubtful for selection during India’s training session it was Shami, who arrived at the ground on a hot summer’s Sydney day in a jacket and flip-flops and did not take part in any of the drills performed. It’s worth remembering that it was not so long ago that Jadeja was included in the thirteen for the Perth Test, but did not feature in the playing eleven in a game where Nathan Lyon was Man of the Match as Australia won. At the time, there was no mention of Jadeja being injured and in the course of the game, Shami even said at a press conference that the spinner was missed. Several days after the Test ended Ravi Shastri, the coach, insisted that Jadeja did not feature as he was injured at the time, suffering from stiffness in the shoulder. When Kohli addressed the media, it seemed to be written in black and white that Ashwin would not feature. When asked about Ashwin, Kohli said: "Well, it's unfortunate that he has had two niggles quite similar in the last couple of away tours. That's obviously him, more than anyone else, who will be focused to correct. The physio and the trainer have spoken to him in terms of what's required in order to get over that injury. “He is very important for sure. In Test cricket, he is a vital part of this team, and we want him to be 100% fit and for a longer period so that he can contribute to us more in the Test format. He is very disappointed with the fact that he has not been able to recover in time, but the things have been laid out to him (as to) what needs to be done to get back to full fitness. Honestly, you can't predict an injury, when it happens you just manage and doing what he can to get over that injury."

What’s more, Kohli explained how India’s plans were disrupted when a key player such as Ashwin got injured in the middle of a series and was unavailable for selection. “I think it [Ashwin's absence] does make you alter your plans a little bit throughout the course of a series. But the fact that Vihari has bowled beautifully whenever we've given him the ball makes us feel absolutely calm about Ashwin not being able to play,” said Kohli. "It is obviously a disappointment for us as a team and for him personally, but if you see the way Vihari has bowled he has looked like picking up a wicket whenever he comes to bowl. He's pitching the ball in the right areas so we are looking at him as a solid bowling option right now. Especially in this Test because he has pace on the ball, he puts in the effort and he's economical and that's all you need from a guy who is coming in to bowl 10-15 overs in a day.” During India’s training session Ashwin underwent fitness drills with Shanker Basu, the trainer, and at one point went indoors with him while the rest continued to practice. There were also several pow-wows within the camp: before the net session began, Kohli, Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane had a long chat with Sanjay Bangar, the assistant coach and following the session, Kohli was seen in discussion with the support staff. Being out of earshot, one can only speculate, but it seemed logical that the batting group’s conversation was about the pitch, which they had just seen and the support staff were discussing options with the captain following injury and/or illness revelations. What seemed likely, from what Kohli said, was that Vihari would return to his No. 6 position while KL Rahul came into the XI in place of Rohit Sharma, who is back home to spend time with his wife and newly-born daughter. This meant that old friends Mayank Agarwal and Rahul would be back in harness together once more, this time at the international level. With Shami being named in the thirteen, most would assume that he would join Jasprit Bumrah and Jadeja in the bowling line-up, leaving a late call to be taken on whether Ashwin would be fit to play, and in the event that he was not, either Kuldeep or Umesh would make the cut, based on the pitch.
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RankTeamPointsRating
1 India 4397 116
2 England 5310 108
3 New Zealand 3213 107
4 South Africa 3712 106
5 Australia 3663 102
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