Despite late resistance, Australia set 70-run target

At one stage on Day 3, it seemed like India would demolish Australia for an innings win after having them on the mat at 99 for 6, following their 131-run lead. However, staunch resilience from the lower order put the top order to shame, showing them how they could've gone about heir business on this MCG wicket, as Australia were eventually bowled out for 200 with a lead of 69 at Lunch on Day 4 in an extended session, leaving India with just 70 to win.

India, who were one bowler short after Umesh Yadav left the field with a calf injury last evening, got little purchase from the old ball at the start of the session. Skipper Ajinkya Rahane shuffled his four available bowlers in short bursts to try and break the sixth wicket stand that had done very well to grind it out last evening and keep India at bay. After eating into the deficit, and getting into the lead late on Day 3, with a slender two-run lead at stumps, they carried on unperturbed once play resumed this morning. Rahane mixed his bowlers up and changed plans on the go needing to break the stand with the bowlers getting no assistance from the wicket. There was no seam, no swing, little bounce and no spin as India played the waiting game well until the new ball.

Siraj tried to bowl at Green's pads on the line of the stumps to being in the leg-before against Green, but the batsman was coming down and shuffling across to eliminate that form of dismissal. Cummins, at the other end, was solid in defence and the pair rotated the strike efficiently as the lead swelled and their stand went past 50. They batted for over 30 overs before Jasprit Bumrah struck. R Ashwin and Bumrah posed questions with the new ball with their lengths. But it was an unplayable snorter from Bumrah that put an end finally to the stand with Cummins gloving one to second slip after the first hour of the day for 22 off 103.

Green farmed the strike with Starc at the other end and kept India at bay en route a resilient 45 before another short ball had him miscue a pull to midwicket off Siraj. Nathan Lyon fell soon after getting a glove off one down leg from the Hyderabadi pacer, but the tail wagged a little longer for Australia, as they went past their first-innings total of 195 with an extra 30 minutes taken in the session. The Indian pacers continued to bowl short, but Starc and Hazlewood resisted them once again and added vital runs to their lead. Hazlewood was cleaned up by Ashwin in what would've been the last over before Lunch with a straighter one that he misjudged and left.

The last time that no Australian batsman scored a 50 in a home Test was against West Indies at the MCG in 1988-89. It's happened this Test with the highest being Marnus Labuschagne's 48 in the first innings.

Brief scores: Australia 195 & 200 (Matthew Wade 40, Marnus Labuschagne 28, Cameron Green 45, Pat Cummins 22; Mohammad Siraj 3-37) lead India 326 (Shubman Gill 45, Ajinkya Rahane 112, Ravindra Jadeja 57; Pat Cummins 2-80, Mitchell Starc 3-78) by 70 runs.