Sutherland, Perry give Aussies upper hand in Perth

Australia's pace attack led by Annabel Sutherland dominated the opening day of the pink-ball Test in Perth, before Ellyse Perry navigated a difficult period under lights to give the hosts the edge at stumps.

Perry, who overcame a quad strain to take her spot in Australia's XI, and Sutherland will resume on 43 and 20 not out respectively on Saturday afternoon at the WACA Ground with Australia 3-96, 102 runs adrift of India's first-innings 198 all out.

Sutherland (4-46 off 17 overs) and 19-year-old debutant Lucy Hamilton (3-31 off 11) had earlier been the chief destroyers on a scorching Perth day, vindicating Alyssa Healy's decision to bowl first as India were bowled out early in the evening session.

That left Australia openers Georgia Voll and Phoebe Litchfield to face the pink ball during the tricky twilight period, and India debutant Sayali Satghare found immediate success with a superb delivery that started outside off and curved back sharply to take the top of leg, bowling Voll for two.

Litchfield's patience was tested as she struggled to find the gaps against the inexperienced India pace attack, as she remonstrated with herself and swung wildly at a series of wide deliveries during her 39-ball stay at the crease.

The presence of Perry, Australia's most accomplished Test batter, at the other end did little to calm her younger teammate, and while the left-hander finally found the boundary 33 deliveries into her innings, she was brilliantly caught by Jemimah Rodrigues at backward point six balls later, ending her innings on nine.

That brought Healy to the middle, and the Australia skipper was given a farewell gift from the cricketing gods when Sayali brushed her off-stump only for the bails to remain intact, giving her a let off on 11.

There was no reprieve when she holed out on 13, however, chipping a simple catch to point to leave Australia 3-58 with 40 minutes remaining in the day, before Perry and Sutherland safely navigated their way through to stumps.

Earlier, Jemimah Rodrigues (52) produced the tourists' only score of note as India were bowled out for 198 early in the evening session.

Hamilton, who had earlier been handed her Baggy Green by Beth Mooney, drew first blood in a dream start to her Test cricket career, striking in her third over with a pearler of a delivery.

The tall left-arm quick got one to shape back into Smriti Mandhana, beating the left-hander's bat to smash into middle stump, sending the India superstar on her way for four.

Shafali Verma (35 from 48 deliveries), recalled to partner Mandhana at the top of the order having been dropped following the first ODI, made a lively start, hitting six boundaries.

She was brought undone however by a superb Sutherland ball that caught the edge of her bat with Mooney doing the rest with the gloves behind the stumps.

Pratika Rawal, debuting at first drop, got a life on four when a loose shot burst through the hands of Hamilton at slip, and she dug in to work her way to 18 from 43 deliveries.

That hard work came underdone half an hour out from the tea break as Sutherland got a second, with Hamilton redeeming herself by holding on to a catch at gully.

When Brown took out Harmanpreet Kaur's off stump, dismissing the India skipper for 19, the tourists were 4-84 and Australia were firmly on top.

The pace barrage led by Sutherland continued as India resumed on 4-99 after the tea break, with the Victorian's third wicket coming as she inflicted further injury into what has thus far been a dire tour with the bat for allrounder Deepti Sharma.

Seemingly in two minds around whether to play or leave, Deepti only managed to bunt the simplest of catches behind to Mooney.

After six digs this multi-format series, Deepti has scored a total of 40 runs – and 29 of those came in the one one-day knock.

Rodrigues was the sole India batter to look comfortable in the middle, absorbing the pressure from Sutherland and turning it back on Alana King when the hometown hero was introduced into the attack, hitting four consecutive boundaries off the leg-spinner's first four balls.

It triggered a strange period for King, whose second over was interrupted by calf cramps, which ultimately saw her spend a period of time off the field, triggering fears of a more severe injury before she returned for the latter stages of India's innings.

Rodrigues brought up a 74-ball fifty, building a key partnership with Richa Ghosh – whose plodding 11 off 41 was the antithesis of her aggressive approach to white-ball cricket – before both fell in the space of five deliveries late in the second session.

Ghosh hit a simple catch to King at mid-wicket to give Ashleigh Gardner the first spin wicket of the day, and Rodrigues was left fuming at herself after bunting a poor delivery down leg straight to Gardner at deep square leg, gifting Hamilton a second.

Hamilton's third saw Sneh Rana skying a catch to mid-on, as Australia got well and truly into the tail with India 8-184 at the dinner break.

Some poor fielding from Australia allowed India's tail to wag longer than it should have, with Mooney putting down Gautam on 16, and miscommunication between three fielders handing her another let-off on 31.

Sutherland and Brown switched tactics, producing a short-pitched barrage to the tail to see off first Sayali (7) then Kranti Gaud (1), ending India's 62. 4 over innings on 198.

NRMA Insurance Australia v India Multi-Format Series

Australia lead the multi-format series 8-4

February 15: First T20: India won by 21 runs (DLS)

February 19: Second T20: Australia won by 19 runs

February 21: Third T20: India won by 17 runs

February 24: First ODI: Australia won by six wickets

February 27: Second ODI: Australia won by five wickets

March 1: Third ODI: Australia won by 185 runs

Australia Test squad: Alyssa Healy (c), Darcie Brown, Maitlan Brown, Ashleigh Gardner, Lucy Hamilton, Alana King, Phoebe Litchfield, Beth Mooney, Tahlia McGrath, Ellyse Perry, Annabel Sutherland, Rachel Trenaman, Georgia Voll, Georgia Wareham

 

India Test squad: Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Smriti Mandhana (vc), Shafali Verma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Richa Ghosh, Deepti Sharma, Kashvee Gautam, Sneh Rana, Amanjot Kaur, Uma Chetry, Pratika Rawal, Harleen Deol, Kranti Gaud, Vaishnavi Sharma, Sayali Satghare

March 6-9: Test match, WACA Ground, 4:20pm AEDT (D/N)