The third day of the first Test at Nagpur started with India in a commanding position. India held a big 223-run advantage after the first session of play, owing to all-rounder Axar Patel’s spectacular 84-run contribution and Mohammed Shami’s entertaining cameo.
With India’s advantage was just over 50 runs, the left-handed hitter stepped out to bat and stayed motivated to form key partnerships with Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Shami, and Mohammed Siraj.
On Day 3, Jadeja didn’t last long, falling to a nice delivery from Todd Murphy that he misjudged. Mohammed Shami joined Axar Patel at the crease and thrilled the fans by smashing two sixes in Murphy’s over, giving the two a fifty-run partnership. But, the rookie got the last laugh when he dismissed Shami in his following over for a well-made 37 off 47 balls with two fours and three sixes.
Axar then stitched a crucial 20-run partnership with Mohammed Siraj, taking India’s advantage to over 220 before being bowled by Pat Cummins as India’s innings concluded with a score of 400 on the board, with Axar going out after facing over 170 deliveries.
