Day one saw India reduced to 59-5 by the new ball and Australia were 59-7, and that spell was always going to be crucial against a fragile India line-up.
Jaiswal and Rahul’s brilliant partnership was superbly judged and timed, and has put some of those questions on the back-burner for now.
They soaked up pressure against the new ball and during an excellent Hazlewood spell after tea, but they also scored more freely when the bowling allowed.
Rahul was dogged, only scoring four boundaries, while we saw some of Jaiswal’s flair, particularly after he brought up his 123-ball half-century – his slowest so far in Test cricket.
He flicked a superb six over square leg off Starc, before hammering off-spinner Nathan Lyon for a 100m six down the ground.
The 22-year-old also showed his character by sledging Starc about his pace when India were 72-0.
Starc had exchanged jokey words with India seamer Nitish Rana, saying: “I bowl faster than you, I have a long memory,” after fending off a bouncer when batting.
Jaiswal said “it’s coming too slow” to left-arm seamer Starc, who managed a smirk in response.
Former Australia batter Mike Hussey, speaking on TNT Sports, was effusive in his praise for Jaiswal: “I wanted to see him in Australia, on bouncy pitches, to see how he’d handle it, but this innings shows he can handle any conditions around the world.”
