On Day 2 of the Boxing Day Test against Australia, young Indian opener Yashasvi Jaiswal was dismissed for a well-played 82 after a costly mix-up with star batter Virat Kohli. Australia made a crucial breakthrough at a crucial point in the game when they broke the 102-run stand between Jaiswal and Kohli.
On the penultimate ball of Scott Boland's 41st over, Yashasvi Jaiswal aced with a full-length ball on off-stump, drove it crisply to Pat Cummins at mid-on and immediately took off for a run. At the non-striker's end, Virat Kohli held firm, shouting against the single as he observed the fielder. But it was too late; Jaiswal had already reached the other end. Although Cummins' attempted direct shot went over the striker's stumps, wicketkeeper Alex Carey recovered the ball and broke the stumps to complete the run-out.
Steve Smith on the mix-up
Smith talked about Virat Kohli and said he thought he would be playing a big knock as he appeared to be in great touch. He also addressed the mix-up between Kohli and Jaiswal that gave Australia the big breakthrough.
"He (Kohli) was really disciplined today, he was leaving nicely, making the bowlers come to him a bit more and scoring well through the leg side and when we went short. So, yeah, I thought we were in for a bit of a masterclass there," Smith said in the post-day press conference.
"Looks like Jaiswal called yes, ran, and Virat sent him back. Simple as that. Yeah, I didn't see much more than that. It was obviously a really good partnership to break that one. And then obviously get the two more wickets. It was a huge last hour for us. So, yeah, that was a big play in the context of the day, I suppose," Smith added.
Reporters also asked if they would have run out Kohli instead of Jaiswal if the opportunity had arrived.
"Look, he's a class player, we know that. Obviously, he played really well in Perth for that 100. And he looked really good today, I thought, 'Jeez' (Jesus), he's in for a good one here. And it was probably the first ball. I think he actually hardly played at on that 5th-6th stump line. But fortunately, you know, Barrell (Boland's nickname) got one to sort of straighten probably off the line on that 5th-6th stump and he probably was one of the only ones he played at. So, yeah, I was fortunate to catch the edge," Smith concluded
It was a catastrophic moment for India, coming just 20 minutes before stumps. Jaiswal and Kohli took India's innings from a shaky 51/2 to 153/2. The young left-hander was in spectacular form, putting together one of the series' best innings. He hit 82 off 117 balls, including 11 boundaries and a six. Jaiswal handled the new ball superbly and switched gears effortlessly against Nathan Lyon and Mitchell Marsh. Missing a century after such a stunning knock would definitely disappoint him.
Virat follows Jaiswal to the dugout
As the old saying goes, "One brings two," and that is exactly what happened. Kohli lost his concentration just seven deliveries after Jaiswal was dismissed. Faced with the first ball of Boland's following over, he edged it to Carey for a well-compiled 36 from 86 balls. Until then, Kohli had shown tremendous control throughout his innings. India unexpectedly found themselves at 164 for 5, with nightwatchman Akash Deep also succumbing to Boland. The triple blow provided the Australian bowlers with much-needed momentum. After appearing tired on a flat track, they rediscovered their rhythm and energy.