Live: Marnus Labuschagne falls after strange confrontation with Indian quick

Date:

Live: Australia vs India at the Gabba

40th over – Bumrah comes in again

Those steps, gradually building to a run and then Bumrah flings the ball down the pitch to Head, who defends. It’s a no ball though so they’ll have to do it all again.

Bouncer from Bumrah, Head gets well under it. The umpire just has a word with Bumrah there – not sure what about though.

Solid defence from Head this time.

Lunch is at the usual time

Thanks for the blog as always. Just wondering what time lunch is? I’m getting hungry…

– MikeR

Which for this Test is 12:20 local, so about 20 minutes or so.

39th over – Deep carries on

Two slips, a gully, fine leg, deep backward point, cover, mid on and off and midwicket in place for the first ball, which Head defends.

Now midwicket has gone to deep backward square leg, as Head defends a straight one, the double bluff of a short pitched delivery being held back for now.

Head drives on the up, rising to meet the ball and gets a single to deep backward point.

Smith only has one deep fielder, at fine leg, as everyone else comes up close. Smith defends into the covers for no run.

Smith leaves the next ball he faces.

Deep’s speed is up at 135 pretty consistently at the moment, as Smith leaves the last outside off.

38th over – Bumrah has switched ends

If Siraj can’t carry on, India’s bowling stocks will be severely tested.

Head leaves the first outside off.

A single on the pull there from Head.

Two slips and a gully for Smith, who gets an inside edge to fine leg for a single. India’s fielders all fling up their hands.

FOUR! Sumptuous from Head! He punched that through the covers with a whip-like crack that echoed around the packed Gabba.

Head pulls now and will run three to deep square leg. The ball was aerial but safe.

Smith defends with a straight bat to end the over – and instantly requests more new gloves.

37th over – Deep will complete Siraj’s over

BIG APPEAL! That’s a massive appeal from Deep! And no wonder! That looks very, very out unless he’s hit it! India are not going to review it for some reason, so perhaps they think he hit it.

(Getty Images)

Deep appealed as if he was trying to simultaneously wave down a fire truck, while putting the fire out with a towel. It was truly spectacular.

Smith defends the next couple after all that excitement.

And he leaves the last, a late decision it seems.

The rain, by the way, has stopped and the sun is back out, so a great call to keep playing.

37th over – Siraj steams in

Bowls outside off and Smith leaves it alone. Smith looks up at the sky. Nobody is moving  from the lower tier, so it can’t be too heavy.

Smith clips off his pads for a couple to backward square leg.

Now there is a delay, but it’s for Mohammed Siraj, who has called for some treatment. He grabbed his left knee.

And he’s actually having to go off.

(Getty Images)

This is bad news for India.

He’s talking to Virat Kohli as he walks off and just pointed out towards the boundary where he was fielding, so perhaps he tweaked something out there?

36th over – Reddy will bowl another

He’s been good so far, has Reddy.

Head looks to drive him positively down the ground but can’t get the ball away.

He does it again, this time making even less contact with the ball in terms of sending it off the square.

FOUR! That’s where Head is so good, cutting late forward of square and through cover for a boundary.

Head leathers another one, down on one knee slashing it to deep point, where Siraj is waiting. Just a single.

(Getty Images)

Smith now clips off his pads and gets a single.

Head looks to hook one down the leg side, but doesn’t make contact. Or does he? The Indian players are keen on this one… will they have a look? No they won’t. And a good job too, because he didn’t hit it.

And it’s raining… It’s light at the moment and we’ll play on.

35th over – Siraj continues

Smith leaves outside off.

And new he defends back down the pitch.

BIG APPEAL! Smith lets the ball hit his pad and the Indian players are really excited about this! They’re going to review it. Siraj wanted the review and was gesturing for it furiously, and his skipper obliges him.

(Getty Images)

OH MY THAT’S CLOSE! The ball would have clipped the off stump according to ball tracking, but it’s umpires call. My, my, my.

There is movement down by the groundstaff’s area as the clouds come over and obscure the sun…

Smith gets a massive inside edge and takes off for a single. Siraj lost his towel in that delivery too.

Head clips the first away. And now clips the second too, for a single this time.

It’s got really spicy out there for a little bit.

34th over – Reddy has four to come

Travis Head is the new man in.

Two slips and a gilly, Head clips off his pads to short midwicket for no run.

Head punches the next one positively to cover. No run.

Travis Head had endured a really bad trot at the Gabba in Test matches, four balls, four wickets, so he’ll be glad to have shaken that off.

He defends another one.

Head again punches to cover for no run.

EDGED! MARNUS HAS TO GO!

Big wicket for India!

Marnus attempted the extravagant drive, gets a thick edge to Virat Kohli at second slip, who takes a good grab above his head.

Marnus has to go for 12, the partnership ends on 37.

(Getty Images)

Australia 3-75.

34th over – Reddy continues

Wonderful from Smith, clipping off his pads through to deep midwicket. They are going to run three. Oh Bumrah has got himself in a right tangle down on the rope. He looks to be OK, despite suffering massive bruising to his ego after almost dragging the ball onto his leg as he stumbled over the rope.

I don’t hate the strategy

Looks like two gritty knocks more concerned with wearing India out and finding form than strictly winning – which, given the likelihood of a washout, seems fairly strategically sound.

– Watcher

33rd over – SIraj continues

You said it, Mike, although the crowd appears to have lost a bit of interest in their Siraj baiting for now.

Smith is hit on the pad and they run a single. Smith has been getting a long way over to the off side so there is some interest in sending this upstairs but it looked high and leg side – suppositions proven by ball tracking on the TV. India didn’t review, but it speaks volumes at how far he is getting across that it was even considered.

A beach ball now gets the treatment from the crowd as play is delayed while it is retrieved from the outfield.

Oh, the booing is back now as Siraj comes down the pitch to switch the bails around. Marnus looks deep into his eyes and, as soon as he walks back to his mark, returns them to their previous orientation.

(Getty Images)

Siraj, the boos amplified, comes in and bowls a short one that Marnus leaves well alone.

Now, in some more s***housery from Marnus, he makes Siraj wait at the top of his mark. Siraj steams in and extravagantly waves his arms as Marnus leaves a tight one outside off.

Marnus clips the next one off his pads for a couple of easy runs to square leg.

And he drives the last square for no run.

Good, entertaining over in which both loads and absolutely nothing happened at the same time.

32nd over – Reddy continues

Marnus drives towards cover but can’t beat the field.

He leaves outside off.

Now Marnus drives to mid off – it’s not coming off the bat with that satisfying whack that it sometimes does when he’s timing it well, but at least he’s getting his eye in.

Now he clips off his pads, they’ll run two out to deep square leg where the boo-boy Siraj gets the treatment from the crowd as he scoots round from a wide-ish fine leg.

Bumrah does really well there at wide mid on, diving to stop runs as Marnus drives neatly back down the ground. Good shot, good fielding.

He leaves the last.

The Gabba bounce

This Gabba wicket seems to be providing a decent amount of bounce today

– Bailey

31st over – Siraj continues

Two slips and a gully, a fine leg, midwicket and mid on the only fielders on the on side as Smith swivels onto a shorter ball and pulls for a couple.

Smith defends the next into short cover, getting up on his toes as the ball rises into him.

Outside off, well outside off as it happens and Smith leaves.

Siraj is a bit scatter gun at the moment, that one is again into the body and Smith defends it as the sun peaks out from behind the clouds, bathing the ground momentarily in sunlight.

Smith is hammered in the pad via the inside edge of his bat – Siraj glares down the pitch towards him and India’s ring field on the off side join his gaze.

(Getty Images)

Smith defends the last and then signals for some new gloves.

Dancing star?

Smudgers footwork more Dancing with the Stars vibes than best since Bradman

– LW

I can’t talk for Dancing with the Stars, but the BBC’s Strictly Come Dancing had a great record with cricket players early on.

Former England cricketers Mark Ramprakash (season 3) and Darren Gough (season 4) both won it.

Phil Tufnell, Michael Vaughan and Graeme Swann all competed too, but were less successful.

This year’s series was won overnight by comedian Chris McCausland.

30th over – Nitish Kumar Reddy continues

Thanks Jon.

Smith defends the first one as Siraj is roundly booed down at fine leg.

Glorious shot from Smith back down the ground. It won’t go for four, as Akash Deep does really well to dive in and flick the ball back. Unfortunately there’s no support there as Bumrah ambles down in support. They run three.

(Getty Images)

Marnus clips to short midwicket but there is no run.

He leaves the next couple with a flamboyant slash of his bat.

Solid defence to end the over from Marnus.

29th over – Siraj vs Labuschagne

He plays off the back foot, and into his back foot. Looks like he was trying to muscle that through cover, but he got a hefty inside edge.

He’s leaving outside off, but that one was mighty close to the off bail. Labuschagne trusting the bounce despite Reddy’s last ball dribbling through.

Labuschgne cracks a cover drive on the bounce straight to KL Rahul at cover for none.

And another big batch of boos for Siraj as he ends his over to Labuschagne.

Meanwhile, no boos for Simon Smale as he takes over.

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