Australia vs India 2018/19, 3rd Test: Player Ratings

India has taken a 2-1 lead in the four match series after winning the third Test at Melbourne. The visitors have not only ensured that they can’t lose the series but also have retained the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

After winning the toss and opting to bat first, India posted a huge total of 443-7 courtesy some brilliant performances from Cheteshwar Pujara (106), Virat Kohli (82) and the debutant Mayank Agarwal (76). In reply, Australia were bowled out pretty cheaply for just 151.

India didn’t enforce the follow-on and scored another 106 runs for the loss of eight wickets before declaring. Chasing the mammoth total of 399, Australia did put up some small partnerships but they weren’t enough as they fell short by 137 runs.

India will look to carry the winning momentum for the next Test whereas Australia will look to square the series in Sydney. Here are the player ratings for the third Test.

India

1. Mayank Agarwal – 9/10

Mayank Agarwal almost had a dream debut for India. He batted flawlessly and scored 76 in his maiden innings. Even in the second innings, when the wickets were falling at the other end, he scored a vital 42.

2. Hanuma Vihari – 4/10

Hanuma Vihari who was opening the innings for the first time in his international career, didn’t score enough runs in both the innings. However, he stayed at the crease and played out the new ball in the first innings. His weakness against the short ball was exploited by the Australian quicks.

3. Cheteshwar Pujara – 8.5/10

Pujara made up for his twin failures in Perth by scoring a classic ton in the first innings. He tired down the Australian bowlers as he faced over 300 balls. In the second innings, he didn’t open his account.

4. Virat Kohli – 8/10

Virat Kohli scored 82 runs in an important partnership with Pujara. He would be disappointed that he didn’t convert into a ton. In the second innings too, he fell in the same trap and got out for a duck.

5. Ajinkya Rahane – 5/10

Rahane would be disappointed that he didn’t get a big score in both the innings. He looked good for his 34 in the first innings but got out in the second innings before getting his eye in.

6. Rohit Sharma – 7/10

Rohit’s knock of 63* helped India to take their total over 400 pretty easily. It was important for Rohit to play a long enough innings. In the second innings, he too was part of the collapse and got out pretty early.

7. Rishabh Pant – 6/10

Once again, Pant played two decent knocks of 39 and 33 in the match. In both the innings, he got out playing the big shot as the declaration was near. He could have been better behind the wickets as he dropped two catches.

8. Ishant Sharma – 7/10

Ishant Sharma kept it tight from one end but didn’t get enough rewards. He picked up a wicket in the first innings and two in the second and would have loved to get more wickets. Nonetheless, he supported the other bowlers by putting pressure on the batsmen.

9. Ravindra Jadeja – 7.5/10

Jadeja didn’t do anything significant with the bat but was really good with the ball. He kept bowling in the rough and picked up wickets at the right time. He got two wickets in the first innings and three in the second.

10. Mohammad Shami – 8/10

Shami was decent with the ball in hand. He took wickets just when the partnerships were building. He picked up the crucial wicket of Khawaja in the second innings which took his tally to three for the match.

11. Jasprit Bumrah – 9/10

Jasprit Bumrah was once again exceptional in this match. He ran through the Australian side in the first innings with a variety of balls as he picked up six wickets. In the second innings too, he kept the pressure and picked up three more wickets.

Australia

1. Marcus Harris – 4/10

Marcus Harris wasn’t at his best in this Test as he got out pretty cheaply in both the innings. He scored just 35 runs in the Test and as a team you need more from your opener. The youngster would look to make up for it in the next Test.

2. Aaron Finch – 3/10

Finch was probably the most disappointing with the bat for Australia. His shot selection wasn’t the best, especially in the second innings when he tried to cut a ball pretty early in the innings. With scores of 8 and 3, his place might be in danger for the next Test.

3. Usman Khawaja – 5/10

Khawaja would be disappointed that he didn’t convert his starts into big scores. He scored 21 and 35 and should have taken the responsibility as a senior batsman of the team. He looked good before getting out in both the innings.

4. Shaun Marsh – 5/10

Shaun Marsh had a similar story to Usman Khawaja. He too got starts but failed to capitalize on it. In the first innings, when he was batting on 19, he was dismissed off a brilliant delivery from Bumrah. In the second innings, he looked assured for his 44 before getting LBW once again to Bumrah.

5. Travis Head – 6/10

Head too threw away the starts in both the innings. He scored 20 and 34 and definitely had the chance to score big. He would be disappointed with the shot he played in the second innings

6. Mitchell Marsh – 4/10

Mitchell Marsh kept it tight with the ball and didn’t give much runs but he was a huge disappointment with the bat. His struggles against Jadeja continued as he got out to him in both the innings after scoring 9 and 10 respectively.

7. Tim Paine – 5/10

Paine had a good match with the gloves but not so with the bat. After scores of 22 and 26 in the two innings, he got out against the run of play. He too could have scored more. His captaincy was good and couldn’t have done much more.

8. Pat Cummins – 9.5/10

Pat Cummins did everything a captain can ask from him. In both the innings, he was Australia’s best bowler as he picked up 9 wickets in the game. He ran through the Indian batting line up in the second innings. Even with the bat, he frustrated India and took the game in the fifth day by scoring a valiant half century.

9. Mitchell Starc – 6/10

Starc didn’t have the best of Test matches as he struggled with the ball. In the first innings, even after bowling 28 overs, he could fetch only two wickets. Surprisingly, he bowled only three overs in the second innings and went wicketless.

10. Josh Hazlewood – 6.5/10

Hazlewood too had an off game as he didn’t pick a lot of wickets. In the first innings, he just got a single wicket but kept it tight in the second innings and took two crucial wickets. He could have been better in the match.

11. Nathan Lyon – 6/10

Nathan Lyon bowled well in the first innings but without much luck as three catches were dropped off his bowling. He bowled a lot of overs and didn’t give away much runs. In the second innings, he went wicketless .