Australia's No.3 batsman Marnus Labuschagne missed another chance to get into the triple-figure mark as he was dismissed for a well-made 72 on the first day of the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne.
As the partnership between Marnus Labuschagne and Steve Smith looked dangerous, Washington Sundar gave his team the big wicket. It was a good ball for Sundar as Labuschagne tried to stop it in the middle after going down the track.
However, he did not get the required height and Virat Kohli took a good catch at mid off over his head with a perfect jump. It was clear that Labuschagne looked disappointed and threw his bat in the air in disgust.
Watch: Virat Kohli moved after finishing off Steve Smith as MCG crowd turned hostile
Watch: Marnus Labuschagne throws away his wicket and Virat Kohli takes a stunner
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Marnus Labuschagne scored 72 off 145 balls and hit 7 fours in his knock. He looked in fine form throughout this innings and formed vital partnerships with Usman Khawaja and Steve Smith.
It was a big wicket for India as it broke a strong stand of 83 runs between Marnus Labuschagne and Steve Smith. Both batsmen looked dangerous on the nose and looked to take the game away from Australia.
Marnus Labuschagne will provide another start
Marnus Labuschagne has had a number. of recent good starts but didn't turn into big ones. The Australian star batsman is finding the Limits-Gavaskar Trophy tough so far with two fifties in six Test innings.
Apart from his 64 in Adelaide, he has struggled to get runs. Marnus Labuschagne has scored 154 runs in six Test innings so far at an average of 25.66. There have been criticisms of Labuschagne from various sides regarding his form.
A few days ago, former Australian opener David Warner had beaten Labuschagne to take away his wicket despite being an established spinner. Warner made the comments after Labuschagne was out for 64 in Adelaide.
Sam Konstas lit up the MCG
Meanwhile, Australia got off to a strong start after winning the toss and electing to bat first. Debutant Sam Konstas smashed the ball across the ground to put the hosts ahead.
Konstas faced some testing spells from Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj earlier in the innings but decided to take them on with the neutral shots.
The 19-year-old played scoops and back scoops to put Bumrah under pressure. Bumrah went for 38 runs in his first six overs and it was very expensive. He didn't even pick up a wicket with the new ball, which was surprising.
Konstas hit a free and looked to take the game forward. He was undaunted by the incident and fearless in his batting display. The right-hander showed glimpses of brilliance in his batting to immediately put the visitors on the back foot.
Australia ended the day on 311-6 as India clawed their way back into the game in the final session. Steve Smith was still batting on 68 off 111 balls with skipper Pat Cummins batting alongside him.
