A clinical and united bowling effort from India sealed a resounding victory in the first Test in Perth as they bowled Australia out for 238, securing a commanding 295-run win. With this win, India have taken a 1-0 lead in the five-match series, setting the tone for the contests ahead.
Starting the day with seven wickets to claim, the Indian bowlers wasted no time getting going.
Mohammed Siraj struck in the second over of the day, inducing Usman Khawaja to mistime a pull shot, sending him back to the pavilion and dashing Australia’s slim hopes of mounting a miraculous chase. With the loss of Khawaja, the writing was on the wall for the hosts—victory for India seemed inevitable, and the only question was how long Australia could delay the result.
Travis Head and Steve Smith, however, staged a spirited resistance, momentarily halting India’s charge. Head played an impressive counter-attacking innings on a challenging pitch with inconsistent bounce and rough patches around the crease. He capitalised on anything bowled wide of the stumps, displaying confidence and intent throughout his knock. The left-hand batter’s aggressive approach applied pressure on the Indian bowlers for the first time in the match, as he refused to shy away from his natural stroke play. Despite attempts by the pacers to draw him into mistakes outside off stump, their strategy yielded little success.
Meanwhile, Smith made noticeable adjustments from the first innings. He adopted a more stable stance at the crease, minimising his back-and-across trigger movement. As the session progressed, Washington Sundar was introduced into the attack for the first time, just before the drinks break. Sundar focused on exploiting the rough where some deliveries kept low and others turned sharply.
The partnership between Head and Smith flourished, crossing the 50-run mark as both batters adopted a more positive approach. Instead of merely focusing on survival, they looked for scoring opportunities, keeping the scoreboard ticking.
Smith, for much of his innings, concentrated on countering the threat of being trapped LBW or bowled. However, this strategy left him slightly exposed to the outside edge. Siraj exploited this vulnerability brilliantly, delivering one of the finest balls of the match to dismiss Smith, who edged it behind.
Head resumed after the lunch break with the same aggressive intent, taking calculated risks to keep the pressure on the Indian bowlers. Meanwhile, Mitchell Marsh, initially looking unsettled, gained confidence and began to find his rhythm. Together, the duo stitched an 82-run partnership, striking boundaries with ease and building momentum for Australia.
However, just as the stand began to look threatening, Jasprit Bumrah reintroduced himself into the attack and delivered a crucial blow, removing Head for a well-made 89. Not long after, debutant Nitish Kumar Reddy claimed his first Test wicket, dismissing Marsh for 47 as the batter chopped the ball onto his stumps.
Alex Carey and Mitchell Starc appeared to be settling in comfortably, showing little trouble as they worked towards surviving the session. Just as it seemed they would head to the tea break unscathed, Dhruv Jurel produced a moment of brilliance at short leg, pulling off a stunning catch to dismiss Starc.
After the break, Sundar dismantled Nathan Lyon’s stumps, and Harshit Rana delivered the final blow by bowling Carey, bringing the match to a close.
Carey batted really well for his 36 and looked like the batter in form. Alongside him, Head and Marsh were the only other Australian batters to put up a fight in what was otherwise a disappointing performance by the hosts with the bat.