Ravichandran Ashwin’s absence was clearly felt on a rather flat deck at The Oval. Apart from the first hour or so, there is nothing much left for the bowlers. After the sun peeked out, the batting turned relatively easy.
Though Khawaja fell for a duck, though Warner was unlucky to get out to a bad ball, and though Labuschagne couldn’t score big… Australia is in the driver’s seat after the end of day 1. Travis Head who came at 76/3 joined Steven Smith and turned the tables upside down. He took the attack to the opposition. At the end of day one, Travis Head is on 146 and Steven Smith is on 95. He is set to score yet another century at one of his favorite grounds, The Oval.
On the other side, India is dearly missing the services of No. 1 Test bowler Ravichandran Ashwin on a flat deck. Ravindra Jadeja’s attack turned rather one-dimensional in the end.
