Live Report - India vs Australia, 3rd Test, Indore

Travis Head and Marnus Labuschagne have steered Australia to a rare dominant nine-wicket victory over India in Indore.

Australia only needed 76 to win on the third day and after a nervous start, including losing Usman Khawaja second ball of the day, Head and Labuschagne played with bravery and skill to race to the target inside 19 overs. Head blasted 49 not out off 53 balls while Labuschagne made 28 not out, with the pair belting the last 63 runs of the chase off just 52 balls.

India had Australia under pressure at 13 for 1 after 10 overs with Ashwin conceding just three singles in five overs having removed Khawaja with a peach in the first over. But a change of ball brought a change of momentum as Ashwin lost control of his length and Head took him down with some brave and smart aerial striking.

Australia can still draw the series with another victory in the 4th Test in Ahmedabad but they have already locked in their spot in the World Test Championship final with victory in Indore. It is a rare victory in India for Australia as well. It is just their second Test win in India in their last 17 attempts.

Here are the WTC final scenarios with Australia winning this game

The 4th Test between India and Australia and the 1st Test between New Zealand and Sri Lanka both start on March 9.

Australia close in on a famous win as drinks come out. India had Australia under enormous pressure. They were 13 for 1 after 10 overs and R Ashwin had 1 for 3 from 5 overs. But then they asked for the ball to be changed due to some damage to the seam. The replacement hasn't been to Ashwin's liking and Australia have hammered 46 runs in five overs. Travis Head has cracked four fours and a six. Marnus Labuschagne has struck four boundaries as well. The bowlers have completely lost their lengths. Australia need just 20 to win.

Travis Head shows some bravery and gets rewarded as Australia breaks free from R Ashwin's shackles. Ashwin got the ball changed at the start of the 11th over with some damage on the seam. But Ashwin was also unhappy with the replacement ball. He overpitched three times and Head pounced. He whipped one against the turn wide of mid on. He pushed another off the thick outside edge through point and sprinted back for a tight two. He then thumped Ashwin high over the long on fence. He finished the over with a single before drilling Ravindra Jadeja flat down the ground for four. Head's bravery opened the door for Marnus Labuschagne to attack and he swatted a slog sweep off Jadeja forward of square. Australia pick up 22 vital runs in 12 balls.

India burn a review with R Ashwin, Virat Kohli all the close-in fielders convinced Marnus Labuschagne was caught at leg slip when he clearly missed it. But Ashwin has locked in. He has not bowled a single bad ball in 24 deliveries. Australia have scored one run off him and lost Usman Khawaja already. It's going to take some bravery to knock Ashwin off his line and length. He has a fierce look of determination.

What a start! R Ashwin delivers a wicket-maiden and Australia's highest runscorer in the series is gone. Usman Khawaja cops a near-unplayable delivery that scratches his outside edge. Good catch by KS Bharat. Khawaja wasn't sure he hit it either and has lost a review after sending it upstairs. Australia are one down with two reviews left.

Andrew McGlashan is at Holkar Cricket Stadium on day 3: Morning from Indore for what will be a short, but potentially exciting day. The lowest defended total in Test history is 85. What can India do with 76 on the board. Another 50 runs and it would have been a great finish; that looked possible while Cheteshwar Pujara was at the crease. As it is, a quick 20 or 30 from Travis Head or Usman Khawaja should get the job done. If Australia do get over the line it will be a remarkable result given where they were after Delhi then losing the toss on this surface. It’s been a bit of a lottery of a Test, but they’ve shown impressive character. However, there is still a job to do.

Good morning from Indore. Australia needs 76 runs. India needs 10 wickets. Under normal circumstances, Australia would be unbackable favourites. But this is far from a normal Test match. Australia lost 6 for 11 yesterday morning. India have lost 20 wickets in just 94 overs of batting. You'd be a fool to discount any result bar the draw. Here is the day 2 report in case you need a reminder of what's gone on. Here are the key numbers from a crazy day. Nathan Lyon trusted his skill and a lesson from his dad to take 8 for 64 and put his side on the brink of a rare win in India. His battle with Pujara was a magnificent centerpiece in an absorbing day. It took a special catch from Steven Smith to remove Pujura.

A remarkable eight-wicket haul from Nathan Lyon has put Australia on the brink of a rare Test win in India but the game is far from over after a stunning first innings batting collapse from the visitors and an obdurate half-century from Cheteshwar Pujura kept the hosts in the game in Indore.

Day two was even more chaotic than day one with Lyon claiming 8 for 64 to bowl India out for 163 in the second innings, setting Australia a fourth-innings target of just 76. It would not have been that many without Pujara’s 142-ball 59. It might not have been that many without another chaotic Australian collapse in the morning session that will give India’s bowlers hopes in the fourth innings.

Australia led by 77 runs with six first wickets in hand at drinks on the second day only to lose 6 for 11 in 34 balls to chaos to let India back into the game. On a spinner’s paradise, Umesh Yadav took three wickets in three overs to finish with staggering figures of 3 for 12 while R Ashwin bagged three in tandem at the other end to bowl Australia out for 197 with a lead of just 88. Their tail has provided no resistance on the entire tour, but this was statistically among the worst lower order collapses in Australia’s Test history.

India's reviewing has received some criticism in this game but the umpires Nitin Menon and Joel Wilson have had a challenging game themselves with five decisions being overturned, not to mention three non-reviews from the two teams that all would have been overturned had reviews been taken. Menon has the unwanted lead overall having had two decisions overturned, as well three other errors that weren't reviewed. He was standing in the opening over of the Test when Mitchell Starc had Rohit Sharma out twice, firstly caught behind and then secondly lbw with Australia not reviewing either. He also turned down an lbw against Marnus Labuschagne off R Ashwin that was out. India opted not to review having already burned two in the innings. But Joel Wilson has made three glaring errors himself. He turned down three lbw shouts that were all given out on review. None of them appeared to be 50-50 calls live. Australia will feel particularly frustrated having to overturn two plumb lbws off Nathan Lyon while Cameron Green saw Wilson's finger go up to a ball that was barely clipping leg stump. Australia fans still have nightmares of Wilson not raising his finger the famous 2019 Ashes Test at Headingley when Lyon trapped Ben Stokes infront with two runs to get and Australia had no reviews left.

Nathan Lyon is keeping his foot on India's throat and keeping the fourth-innings chase down in the process. He trapped R Ashwin lbw, getting the review right for the second time in this innings after Joel Wilson again turned down another shout that was crashing into the stumps. It's Lyon's 23rd Test match five-wicket haul and his second in consecutive Tests. He has also become the third visiting Test bowler to claim 50 Test wickets against India in India. He continues to lead Australia's attack.

ESPNCricinfo statistician Shiva Jayaraman: With so much turn on offer and the ball not losing pace after it has pitched, the Indore pitch hasn’t been kind on batters who’ve tried to play spinners from the backfoot. Until tea on day two, nine wickets had fallen to spinners when batters tried to play off the backfoot – a wicket coming every 21 balls. In comparison, in the first two Tests of the series eight wickets fell from 457 balls – one every 57 balls. A similar nine dismissals (until tea) had come about in this Test when batters have played off their front foot to spinners, but once every 59 balls only. In the first two Tests, playing off the front foot was the riskier option – with a wicket falling to spinners every 37.8 balls. Cheteshwar Pujara likes to come down the track to spinners a lot more than an average batter does and that has perhaps helped him survive on this pitch so far. He was dismissed playing back to Nathan Lyon in the first innings but has been very selective going back to spinners in this innings. He had gone back to only 18 of the 76 balls he had faced from spinners until tea, and from the evidence that he hasn’t played one false shot out of those 18, he had chosen those deliveries well. On this Indore pitch batters are a lot more likely to survive playing on the front foot to spinners than going back to them.

Nathan Lyon has picked up his fourth with KS Bharat playing for turn from around the wicket and the ball sliding on past the outside edge to crash into middle and off. Lyon bagging four is no surprise. He's bowled superbly in the last two Test matches for Australia. But R Ashwin coming to the crease at No.8 ahead of Axar Patel is out of line with the previous match. Axar has averaged 85 with the bat in the series and his batting has been one of the key differences between the two sides. Ashwin also played an important role in Delhi with the bat and has five Test hundreds. He'll still be an obdurate opponent for Australia to remove.

Shreyas Iyer might be ripping the game away from Australia. He's pounced on Matthew Kuhnemann's mistakes since tea smacking him for two sixes and two fours. He also found the boundary twice off Nathan Lyon via some fortune. But aggression is paying dividends. It took over two hours to erase the 88-run deficit. They raced to a 25-run lead in three overs.

Andrew McGlashan at Holkar Cricket Stadium: Seems bizarre to say it given the current scoreline, but when will Australia get nervous? 50, 75, 100 ahead for India? Each of those is some way off at the moment. Wickets haven’t quite gone in huge clumps this afternoon, largely thanks to Cheteshwar Pujara, but it feels like there could be another clatter at any moment. Is it worth Shreyas Iyer throwing caution to wind? Of course he would be criticized if it went wrong, but it could put the pressure back on Australia. It will be interesting to see if the visitors make use of Mitchell Starc in this final session should wickets not fall early. Starc did not look entirely comfortable in his first spell – still troubled by the finger injury – but Umesh Yadav was spectacular with reverse swing this morning.

This game hangs on a knife’s edge. It might hang on the bat of Cheteshwar Pujura. India are clawing their way towards setting Australia a nervous fourth-innings chase on the back of a nerveless batting display from Pujara in the face of some wonderful spin bowling from Australia’s trio as they prised out four of India’s top five with the lead still intact. Pujura stood firm but he never stood still in nearly two hours of attritional batting to keep India alive. Having learned from his mistake in the first-innings, he played exclusively with a vertical bat, always played in front of his pad and used his feet superbly to smother the spin of Nathan Lyon, Todd Murphy and Matthew Kuhnemann. It was something his teammates could not manage. Shubman Gill fell to a wild heave across the line to Lyon. Rohit Sharma failed to play with a vertical bat going back to a full ball from Lyon again. Virat Kohli made the same mistake to Kuhnemann before Ravindra Jadeja was unable to get his bat infront off his pad as he was trapped plumb infront by Lyon. Australia’s veteran bagged three of the four as all three spinners bowled brilliantly. But Australia’s lead has been whittled to just nine runs while not even halfway through India’s long batting line-up. They would not be comfortable chasing anything north of 70 on this pitch against this attack. The last session will be critical.

When Ravindra Jadeja walked out to bat, Steven Smith brought Nathan Lyon straight on to bowl in place of Todd Murphy. Lyon picked up Jadeja in the first innings. But it was a pretty loose shot as opposed to a good piece of bowling. Jadeja actually has a decent record against Lyon both in this series and overall. He averages 43 against Lyon in the series for one dismissal and 41.50 for four dismissals across his career having faced 302 balls prior to today. But Murphy has knocked over Jadeja twice in 15 deliveries. Smith wisely brought Murphy back on and swung Lyon to the other end. Murphy has immediately caused Jadeja problems have tied Virat Kohli down prior to Kohli's dismissal to Matt Kuhnemann. The two off-spinners in tandem appear to be the right match-up for Jadeja and Cheteshwar Pujara together.

Andrew McGlashan reports from the stands at Holkar Cricket Stadium: Just spent a few minutes sat in the stands to soak in the atmosphere. Another very healthy crowd has filled in, looked like more were still coming after lunch. Chants of ‘India, India’ went around followed shortly after by a very impressive Mexican Wave. Every single was being cheered as though they were boundaries – it’s that sort of Test match. There was particular excitement when Cheteshwar Pujara got off the mark. And now the chants of ‘Kohli, Kohli’ have just gone around as he walks in. India need a big one from the King today.

The partnership between Usman Khawaja and Marnus Labuschagne is currently the difference in the game. But if India had been smarter with their reviews it might not have happened. Labuschagne was hit on the pad on 7 with Australia 38 for 1. He was given not out. But India only had one review remaining after Ravindra Jadeja convinced Rohit Sharma to burn through two early in the innings. They opted not to review to save one, and Labuschagne was saved as ball tracking showed three reds. India ended up burning all three reviews inside 45 overs with Jadeja the bowler on all three occasions. His record with reviews is woeful. He has had just six successful reviews off his bowling in 26 attempts since 2018. He is not solely to blame. His captain has to grant the review and it ultimately falls on him. Rohit and India have taken 11 bowling reviews in this series and only been successful four times. They have also lost six, with just one being deemed umpire's call. They were fortunate that the three burned reviews in Australia's innings didn't cost any more runs beyond Labuschagne's contribution. Had Cameron Green's lbw to Umesh Yadav been given not out on the second morning, India might well have conceded a far larger lead.

India are back in the Test match after a stunning session of two halves. Australia were 77 runs infront with six first-innings wickets in hand at drinks in the first session on day two after Peter Handscomb and Cameron Green had added 30 without loss and without any drama in the first hour. Less than half an hour later Australia were all out for 197 with a lead of just 88, having lost 6 for 11 in 34 chaotic deliveries. It was a stunning turnaround and it was sparked by R Ashwin and Umesh Yadav, the two bowlers Rohit Sharma has not really used in the first hour. Ashwin found the perfect length that he had been searching for on day one and extracted some extra turn and bounce to have Handscomb caught at short leg. Yadav then claimed the key scalp of Green with a ball that just straightened a touch off the seam and had Green playing the wrong line. He was hit on the back leg and adjudged lbw by Joel Wilson. Had he not been given out, India would have had no reviews to use. He was given out and Green reviewed. Ball tracking had it clipping the outside corner of leg stump. Australia folded from there as they have done so often in this series. Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill reached 13 without loss in a short spell of four overs before lunch. The game is well and truly alive.

Drinks have completely changed the game. Australia made 30 without loss in the first hour. Since drinks they have lost six wickets in 34 balls to bowled out for 197. R Ashwin finally extracted some extra turn to find the inside edge of Peter Handscomb's broad bat and he was well held at short leg. Then Umesh Yadav proved why he is so effective in India. He has targeted the stumps and knocked over three. He now has more than 100 wickets in India at a remarkable average. His bowling strike rate of 46.1 at home is the best among the bowlers with 100-plus Test wickets for India. He got a slice of luck with Joel Wilson giving Cameron Green out lbw. It was just clipping the outer edge of the leg stump. But there was no doubt about his other two, flattening the off stump of both Mitchell Starc and Todd Murphy. Alex Carey was correctly adjudged lbw to Ashwin in between after trying to defend with a big stride and getting beaten on the inside. Ashwin picked up Nathan Lyon sweeping to finish Australia off. They are all out for 197 after losing 6 for 11. Australia's tail struggled again. Their last five partnerships contributed 11 runs. It is the joint-third lowest for Australia and the joint-lowest in the last 40 years. India are back in the game.

Andrew McGlashan adds: Well, someone hit the fast forward button again. After the quiet first hour the day has exploded into life. Is that a matchwinning lead for Australia? It’s certainly very handy, but they won’t want to be chasing 100 in the fourth innings. This is now a big test of India’s top order which has looked uncertain a times in this series. Umesh Yadav’s spell of reverse swing is a reminder to not forget the quicks. Will be interesting to see how Mitchell Starc is used and how quickly Australia can get it going. It’s not even lunch on day two and we’ve had 20 wickets. Anyone hoping to come along to the game tomorrow might be advised to pop in this afternoon.

Peter Handscomb and Cameron Green have batted through the first hour with outstanding control to score 30 runs without loss. They were in control of 88.6 percent of deliveries from the spinners. In the first hour on day one, India's batters were only in control of 61.3 percent of deliveries against spin and lost five wickets. Handscomb and Green have been very assured in defence using their reach, a vertical bat and soft hands. They have been precise with their footwork and haven't tried to overhit the ball like some of India's top order did.

Andrew McGlashan at Holkar Cricket Stadium: Feels as though the pitch has been a little less spiteful so far this morning. There has still been some significant turn, especially for Ravindra Jadeja, but it hasn’t been as dramatic as this time yesterday. Green and Handscomb have also played excellently, by and large staying in their crease other than the recent clump down the ground by Green. They have contrasting techniques – Green more orthodox than Handscomb – but both have played with a straight bat in defence and made good use of a big stride. It’s especially impressive from Green in what is his first innings in more than two months. There could easily be a clatter of wickets around the corner, but so far this pair are putting Australia into a very strong position.

Peter Handscomb has been the hardest Australian to dislodge for India in this series. He hasn't hurt them on the scoreboard as much as Usman Khawaja has but his defence has been the best by far. Ravindra Jadeja has tormented all of Australia's batters in this series. The only players he hasn't got out are Cameron Green and Scott Boland and it's only because he has barely bowled to them. But Jadeja has bowled 134 balls to Handscomb in this series prior to day two in Indore and only got him out twice. No Australian has survived more balls against him. Handscomb has made 57 runs and defended superbly. Only Khawaja has made more runs against Jadeja, but the left-armer has got Khawaja three times. If he can absorb Jadeja's pressure on the second morning and let Cameron Green expand at the other end, Australia could take the game away this morning.

Andrew McGlashan is at Holkar Cricket Stadium for us: Morning from Indore. Feels a little warmer than it did at this time yesterday. All eyes on this pitch which is going to continue to be a talking point. The first session will go a long way towards deciding the Tests - if Australia get 100+ ahead they will be in a fantastic position, although India will believe they could defend just about anything in the fourth innings. India need to be on the mark from ball one today; they started poorly with the ball yesterday although did drag it back. Big day for Cameron Green - can he channel the spirit of Galle? Don't rule out a two-day finish.

Good morning from Indore ahead of what shapes as a fascinating day two. Australia are firmly in control of the Test match leading by 47 with six wickets in hand. Here is Hemant Brar's day one report. But they had a stranglehold on the Test in Delhi on two occasions and let them both slip. Ravindra Jadeja looms large with four wickets to his name already. Karthik Krishnaswamy analysed Jadeja's mixed bag. Andrew McGlashan noted that Australia finally found their own answer to Jaddu yesterday with Matthew Kuhnemann claiming a stunning five-wicket haul to help bowl India out for just 109. Ian Chappell observed how Usman Khawaja has settled on a successful method in India after a brilliant and possibly match-defining 60 on day one.

Australia have their best day of the series on the back of a maiden Test five-wicket haul from Matthew Kuhnemann and a sensational 60 from Usman Khawaja to put the visitors firmly in control of the Test match at the close of day one.

Kuhnemann tore through India's batting after the home side won the toss, claiming 5 for 16 in a superb spell. Nathan Lyon picked up three wickets and Todd Murphy bagged the vital scalp of Virat Kohli. After India folded for 109, Khawaja and Marnus Labuschagne put together a 96-run stand to take Australia to the lead.

Khawaja was near flawless on a difficult pitch. He used his vertical bat and rotated the strike superbly. He was judicious with his sweeps and prospered as a result. Labuschagne enjoyed a lot of luck but played an important role. India's bowlers struggled to pin Australia's batters down with Ravindra Jadeja the only man to cause regular trouble taking all four wickets.

Axar Patel had 47 Test wickets at 14.29 coming into the series. He has one wicket at a cost of 99 so far in this series. He is averaging 85 with the bat and has arguably been the difference for India in that department. But he has not put any fear into Australia's batters as was anticipated. He has really struggled to find his length as illustrated by two deliveries to Steven Smith in his last over. One was a half-tracker and one was a half-volley. He hasn't had the chance to settle into a long spell due to the success of Ravindra Jadeja in combination with R Ashwin and India haven't needed him. But they have today and he has not been able to have an impact after being stranded with the bat.

Usman Khawaja falls for a brilliant 60. But he will be annoyed with himself. He was very selective in using his sweeps and reverse sweeps during his innings. He had played just five sweeps and reverse sweeps in 144 balls for 8 runs. He had instead opted for using the vertical bat predominantly during the innings. But Ravindra Jadeja's change of angle over the wicket changed Khawaja's plan. Suddenly he found it harder to defend off the back foot with the ball spinning back sharply from the rough. He tried to sweep out of the rough and was hit on the shoulder. Two balls later he slog-swept off the top edge and was caught in the deep. He played wonderfully well and deserves a mountain of credit for that innings in what is likely to be low scoring game. But he is another example of an Australian batter moving away from his plans ever so briefly and falling as a result.

This is the last 21 deliveries Ravindra Jadeja bowled to Marnus Labuschagne. Usman Khawaja and Labuschagne had built their superb partnership on rotation of strike. They didn't allow any of the India bowlers to settle at one batter. But Jadeja finally locked in on Labuschagne in the 31st over. He pinned him on the crease and asked him to defend. Labuschagne couldn't find a gap or a scoring option. He did not score a run off the bat for 21 balls against him. Just like in Delhi, Jadeja got through Labuschagne's defence as he played back to the wrong length. Jadeja has him four times in the series now. India nudge the door ajar.

Usman Khawaja is sick of proving people wrong. Following his magnificent 81 in Delhi he was asked about proving himself in India given it was his first time playing Test matches here. He scoffed, noting he had nothing to prove given his record on the subcontinent and that he had scored a first-class century in India for Australia A. He was thrice dropped from Australia's Test team in three consecutive tours on the subcontinent in 2016-17, seen only as a home specialist. Now he's Australia's best batter in Asia. He's Australia's best batter on bunsen burners. He's proved it time and again in the last 12 months. He made 71 in Galle when three batters passed 50 for the Test. He made 81 in Delhi, the highest score in the match when three more only passed 50. He's made 50 in Indore on a terrible pitch. He's played the line with soft hands. He's played with a vertical bat. He's used his sweeps and reverse sweeps judiciously. He's rotated the strike superbly. He's never been hurried or panicked. It has been a masterclass of high-pressure batting. He's dragged Australia back into the series.

Another dominant session for Australia. It is arguably the first time in the series Australia have won back-to-back sessions. A sensational unbeaten 59-run stand between Usman Khawaja and Marnus Labuschagne has put Australia in a position where they could claim a match-winning lead by stumps. Khawaja and Labuschagne played with soft hands and cool heads. They enjoyed a lot of luck, particularly Labuschagne, but their ability to rotate the strike has put India's spinners under pressure. They have rotated the strike with controlled cricket shots, and more often than not using a vertical bat. Khawaja has played the best innings of the match by some margin. His 33 not out looks like 133 on this pitch at the moment. India have one wicket and one maiden to tea. And that one maiden yielded a leg bye. India need a reset at tea.

Andrew McGlashan: Marnus Labuschagne is a great batter. He is also a lucky one. Just over a year ago, ESPNcricinfo looked into some numbers to see just how lucky. In the recent new season of The Test, Labuschagne's luck was also a topic of conversation amid team-mates. "Marnus and how lucky he is – it's remarkable," Nathan Lyon says at one point during the 2021-22 Ashes. And there will have been a few more moments to add since then. A couple of them have come this afternoon. He could hardly believe it when he dragged a shortly delivery from Ravinda Jadeja into his stumps but was given a reprieve when Jadeja had overstepped – and not for the first time. Then on 7 then was almost a replica of his dismissal to R Ashwin in Delhi when a delivery spun back into the front pad. However, it wasn’t given on field and India didn’t go upstairs having quickly wasted two reviews off Jadeja’s bowling. In what looks like it will be a low-scoring game, they could be vital moments.

Australia have calmed their minds and their nerves and they've got India rattled. Usman Khawaja and Marnus Labuschagne have been able to rotate the strike consistently and it has meant that R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja haven't been able to settle in at one particular batter. In 13 overs, Australia have scored at least one run in every over. Ashwin does have a maiden to his name but Australia scored a leg bye in that over. India meanwhile are searching for wickets. They have burnt two reviews and then not reviewed an lbw that would have seen Labuschagne given out to Ashwin. Labuschagne has had a stack of luck having also been out off a no-ball. But the strike rotation has put pressure on India's bowlers and challenged them to search for wicket-taking balls.

For a moment, it looked like Marnus Labuschagne had a problem. He looked like he was out to Ravindra Jadeja for the fourth time in the series having chopped on trying to cut off the back foot to a ball that kept low. But the Holkar Cricket Stadium siren rang out. Joel Wilson's arm was outstretched. Jadeja had overstepped. Jadeja now has the problem. He has been the dominant bowler in the series but he has taken three wickets off no-balls. Jadeja bowls a remarkable number of no-balls for a spinner.

India bowled out in 33.2 overs after winning the toss and batting. Andrew McGlashan asks a question we're all thinking. Time will tell what kind of score that is. R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel will be licking their lips after what Australia's spinners have just done. India's lowest Test total at home since 107 and 105 against Australia in Pune back in 2017.

During the first Test of this series in Nagpur Matthew Kuhnemann was playing for Queensland against Victoria in a Sheffield Shield match at the MCG. It was first first-class match since October. He had played the same number of Second XI matches for Queensland as Shield games this summer until that fixture. Less than three weeks later he has a Test match five-wicket haul against India in just his second Test having flown in as cover for Mitchell Swepson ahead of the Delhi Test. The pitch has been diabolical for batting but Kuhnemann's lengths and control have been excellent and he has been duly rewarded.

Alex Carey has had an indifferent time with the bat in India so far but his glovework has been outstanding in all three Tests. He started with a sensational legside catch off Todd Murphy in Nagpur to dismiss Virat Kohli. He completed his first Test stumping in Delhi, also to dismiss Kohli off Murphy. But in Indore, on the toughest surface of all he has been faultless so far. He completed an excellent stumping to remove Rohit Sharma when the ball bounced and spun. He has produced some excellent legside takes and his catch off Matt Kuhnemann to remove R Ashwin has been one of his best of the series. Sharp spin from a full length, with some added bounce, he stayed low and claimed a good catch with soft hands. Australia's spinners have benefitted from his work behind the stumps in this series.

Australia head to lunch very happy with India 84 for 7 but their excitement will be tempered somewhat by the thought of having to bat on this Indore pitch. It looked like a great toss to win but this pitch is a lottery. Spin is wreaking havoc. Matthew Kuhnemann and Nathan Lyon have three wickets each but it was Todd Murphy who took the key scalp of Virat Kohli as he was the only India batter who looked to have found a sound method on this difficult pitch. It is hard to know what a good score is. Both teams will be having some interesting discussions over lunch.

Todd Murphy has bowled superbly in this series, belying his lack of first-class experience and his age. He has picked up Virat Kohli three times in three Tests. The first dismissal in Nagpur was a touch fortunate. But since then he has worked Kohli over. In Delhi, he gave Kohli nothing to score off before India's No.4 skipped out and was stumped by one that skidded on past the outside edge. Here in Indore, Kohli had looked incredibly assured on a difficult pitch. He played predominantly off the back foot with a vertical bat, reacting to the sharp spin and inconsistent bounce with staggering skill. But Murphy bowled 16 straight balls to him for one run to set up his dismissal. The young Victorian never let Kohli play back. He had to stretch forward consistently to defend good length deliveries pitching on middle and spinning back down the line. Eventually, the lack of runs and rotation of strike forced Kohli to try and work something square off middle and he was trapped plumb lbw.

Andrew McGlashan: You don’t get this at the Gabba. Whatever happens from here, this tour will provide some good stories for Matt Kuhnemann to tell in years to come. Having not been in the original squad he has now claimed Virat Kohli as his first Test wicket and run through India’s top order on a bunsen burner. Leaving aside wider judgements on the pitch for a moment, there was some classical left-arm spin from Kuhnemann. He drew Rohit Sharma down the pitch, beating him with turn and bounce, then produced a lovely delivery to find the edge of Gill’s bat. His third wicket owed a little more to good fortune as Shreyas Iyer was defeated by some low bounce, getting a bottom edge into off stump. He was also sharp in the field, latching onto Ravindra Jadeja's back-foot drive at short cover in what was a chaotic period of Test cricket.

Carnage. Utter carnage. You can't take your eyes off the action for a moment. India have lost five wickets in an hour after winning the toss. All five fell to spin. Matt Kuhnemann has three and Nathan Lyon has two. This game is moving in fast forward. Can Virat Kohli shepherd the home side to a score of significance? Anything upwards of 150 is going to look quite competitive based on what we've seen so far. Especially given Australia will have to bat last.

Trouble for the batters on this pitch. Since spin has come into the game in the 6th over India has lost three wickets. The ball is spinning sharply. Some are skidding straight. Some are bouncing and some are shooting low. Alex Carey has been hit in the helmet. Cheteshwar Pujura was bowled by one that stayed low and spun square. Hard to know what a good score will be but it's hard to see this game lasting more than three days.

Andrew McGlashan: Bit going on in the early exchanges. Mitchell Starc has caused more problems in a handful of overs that Australia’s other quicks managed in the first two Tests. We should have been talking about his ability to take first-over wickets, but instead we are talking about Australia’s reviewing – and, perhaps in the case of the first-ball nick, how the on-field umpire didn’t spot the edge from Rohit Sharma. Cameron Green found some early swing but was quickly replaced by Matt Kuhnemann and – hold the front page – there was spin. Big spin, in fact. He beat Rohit Sharma on the front foot then drew him down the pitch, beating him in the flight with another than spun massively. Runs have also flowed quickly, the small outfield is lightning fast, so you get the feeling that what happens in this game could happen quickly. And now Shubman Gill has edged to slip. This could be lively.

Spin into the attack in the sixth over and Matthew Kuhnemann strikes straight away. Rohit Sharma's bizarre innings ends. Kuhnemann immediately finds a great length and extracts sharp turn from the fresh part of the pitch. The boundaries were flowing and Rohit wanted to continue finding the rope. He tried to sweep and was beaten. He then charged down the track and swung wildly to be stumped by a mile. It spun and bounced sharply past the charging Hitman. It was a nice piece of work from Alex Carey. Australia will be relieved the two non-reviews in the first over didn't cost too much.

Australia will be kicking themselves. First ball of the Test match from Mitchell Starc to Rohit Sharma scratches the outside edge of Rohits bat. Australia appeal. Nitin Menon gives it not out. Steve Smith, Alex Carey and Starc confer and decide not to review. Replays show he clearly nicked it. Fourth ball of the over. Starc swung one back down the line, it beat the inside edge and hit the back pad. Australia appealed again. Nitin Menon turned them down again. No review again. Ball tracking shows three reds. A disastrous start for Australia.

There have only been two previous Tests played in Indore. In 2016, India belted New Zealand by 321 runs. The home side piled up 557 for 5 declared after winning the toss with Virat Kohli making 211 before R Ashwin took 13 wickets. In 2019, India bowled Bangladesh out for 150 and 213 with Mohammed Shami picking up seven wickets while Mayank Agarwal piled up 243 in India's only innings of the match.

Andrew McGlashan chimes in: There’s a little bit of the unknown about this surface given the venue wasn’t due to host this match until a week or so ago and there's only been two previous Tests here. It’s probably unwise to read too much into the domestic scores, but in this season’s Ranji Trophy there has only been one team score over 400.

Rohit Sharma has won his first toss of the series and India will unsurprisingly bat first.

Rohit Sharma: "This [pitch] is slightly different. It looks a little dry. So we've got to adapt our skills and be at it all the time. We are not there yet [in the WTC final]. So we've got to win this game. It's important for us to stay in the present and focus on what we need to do here. We've made two changes. Gill has come in in place of KL. And we have rested Shami. Umesh comes in in place of him."

Steven Smith: "It looks pretty dry. No surprise Rohit decided to bat first. Hopefully, we can execute our skills early and put the India batters under a bit of pressure. I think [the break] came at a good time for us. Obviously disappointing the way we ended our last Test match. The guys have had a bit of time to reflect and rest and get back into some really good preparation here and hopefully, we can put some things we've practiced into play out here in the middle under pressure. We're thinking of Pat and his family. We've got two changes. Mitch Starc comes in for Pat and Greeny comes in for Davey."

India: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Ravindra Jadeja, KS Bharat, Axar Patel, R Ashwin, Umesh Yadav, Mohammed Siraj

Australia: Usman Khawaja, Travis Head, Marnus Labuschange, Steven Smith (c), Peter Handscomb, Cameron Green, Alex Carey, Mitchell Starc, Todd Murphy, Nathan Lyon. Matthew Kuhnemann