O'Keefe six-for sinks India for 105

End of innings India 105 (Rahul 64, O’Keefe 6-35) trail Australia 260 (Renshaw 68, Starc 61, Umesh 4-32, Ashwin 3-63) by 155 runs
Live scorecard and ball-by-ball details

Play 04:18

Ugra: Kohli dismissal a demonstration of Starc’s smarts

Steve O’Keefe precipitated a remarkable collapse from India on the second afternoon in Pune, where the hosts capitulated to be all out for 105. O’Keefe captured 6 for 35, his analysis made all the more stunning by the fact that all six of his wickets came in a spell of 25 deliveries after the lunch break. India lost their last seven wickets for 11 runs in a scarcely believable role-reversal from the pre-series expectations.

The surrender began when O’Keefe plundered three wickets in an over, beginning with KL Rahul, whose ugly slog was taken at long-off by David Warner. And to add injury to insult, Rahul crumpled in pain after playing the shot, clutching the left shoulder that had also caused him some soreness during the first session. He made 64, which turned out to be nearly 61% of India’s entire score. But nobody expected the collapse that followed.

Two balls later, Ajinkya Rahane’s edge was brilliantly taken at second slip by Peter Handscomb, instinctively thrusting his right hand low to the ground in a display of outstanding reflexes that he himself would show again later in the innings. Another two balls later, Wriddhiman Saha failed to handle O’Keefe’s turn and also edged, to be taken more conventionally at first slip by Steven Smith. India had gone from 94 for 3 to 95 for 6 in one over.

Nathan Lyon interrupted the procession of O’Keefe wickets in the next over by having R Ashwin caught at short-leg in extraordinary circumstances. Ashwin’s defensive push went straight down and struck him on the toe, then bounced up temptingly for the close-in fielder, Handscomb, who dived forward and stuck out his right hand to complete the catch. India had lost four wickets in eight balls.

O’Keefe claimed his fourth a few overs later when Jayant Yadav was dragged just out of his ground and Matthew Wade completed a crisp stumping, and India were 98 for 8. In his next over, O’Keefe completed his maiden Test five-wicket haul when Ravindra Jadeja confirming that utter panic had set in to the Indian camp: he danced down the pitch and slogged high to deep midwicket, where Mitchell Starc took the catch.

The end came when Umesh Yadav edged O’Keefe to Smith at first slip, and India had collapsed to their worst total in a completed home innings for nearly nine years. O’Keefe’s accuracy and ability to turn some deliveries and not others, and some more than others, troubled the India batsmen in just the same way that India’s own spinners had caused problems for Australia on the turning pitches in 2013.

That Australia took a 155-run first-innings lead was hard to fathom, but it put them in the perfect position to aim for their first Test victory in India since 2004.

The day had started with Australia on 256 for 9 and hoping that their last pair, Starc and Josh Hazlewood, might find a way to push the total up towards 300. Starc signalled his intent by slogging R Ashwin for a boundary from the second ball of the day, but he did not survive until the end of the over. Fifth ball, Starc slog-swept to deep midwicket and was caught for 61, ending Australia’s innings at 260.

Although O’Keefe opened the bowling, it was pace that brought Australia the first three wickets. M Vijay was drawn into pushing outside off in Hazlewood’s first over, and edged an inswinger behind for 10. Starc succeeded with a well-directed short ball that surprised Cheteshwar Pujara, who could do little but glove behind while trying to fend the ball away.

Two balls later Starc also had the prize wicket of Virat Kohli for a second-ball duck. Perhaps trying to impose himself on the match as early in his innings as possible, Kohli drove expansively at a wide ball and edged to first slip. Two wickets in an over seemed like something special for Australia. If only they knew what was to come.

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.

Source: ESPN Crickinfo