Perhaps stung by the defeat, or perhaps no longer able to retain their elite smiles in place after their jaws starting aching, Australia reverted to type, almost, in Perth
Australia beat India by 146 runs in Perth Tuesday to level the series with their first Test win since the ball-tampering 'sandpapergate' scandal that rocked international cricket.
Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Starc combined for a stand of 36 runs for the tenth wicket on day four, and with the benefit of hindsight, one could say that partnership was the clincher for Australia in the second Test.
Set a massive target of 287, India ended the day on 112/5. They need a further 175 runs, with Australia one strike away from entering a feeble tail
The best and the worst from day four of the second Test between Australia and India at the Optus Stadium in Perth
Australia is poised for their first Test match win since the ball-tampering scandal after spinner Nathan Lyon claimed the prized wicket of Indian captain Virat Kohli in the second Test in Perth on Monday.
Khawaja and Paine have dug in taking Australia to 132/4, with a lead of 175 over India.
Nathan Lyon bagged his 14th five-wicket haul in Tests to hand Australia an extremely handy lead of 43 runs, before Aaron Finch and Marcus Harris played out an hostile session of fast bowling from Jasprit Bumrah and Ishant Sharmato extend that lead to 76/0
Master batsman Virat Kohli smacked his 25th century on Sunday and his sixth in Australia, joining the elite company of boyhood hero Sachin Tendulkar.
Here’s crunching down the numbers on Virat Kohli’s 25th Test ton: