Melbourne, Dec 29: A solid 51-run stand for the final wicket between Nathan Lyon (41 not out) and Scott Boland (10 not out) frustrated India as Australia extended its lead to 333 runs after reaching 228/9 in 82 overs at stumps on day four of the Boxing Day Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.

On a day of glorious Test cricket action, India had got rid of Marnus Labuschagne, Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins in the final session, and the possibility of them kickstarting their chase before stumps seemed clear. But Lyon and Boland batted together for 110 balls, and ensured their resistance left India agitated in front of 43,867 fans.

It would be interesting to see if Australia would continue batting tomorrow or declare overnight and push India into a remarkable chase – the highest-ever in the MCG - on final day’s play.

The final session began with Mohammed Siraj striking with his first ball – getting to jag off the pitch to trap Labuschagne lbw. The batter went for the review, but ball tracking said the ball was clipping the bails on umpire's call, and Labuschagne had to walk back for 70. Starc was run-out in pursuit of a second run, with Rishabh Pant removing his glove and effecting the run-out at non-striker’s end.

The end of Australia’s innings looked imminent when Ravindra Jadeja got one to pitch on off stump and turns away to take the edge of Cummins's bat, and dismiss him for 41 runs off 90 balls. But with India's bowlers tiring and the ball becoming soft, Lyon and Boland got the platform to launch their resistance.

The desperation meant Siraj dropped a chance on follow-through off Lyon, who also survived an lbw attempt, as India burnt their final review. While Boland cut Siraj for four to bring up Australia’s 300, Lyon was sweeping, dancing down the pitch, chipping and slicing for boundaries.

There was some drama on the last over of the day when KL Rahul took a tumbling catch by using his legs off Lyon against Bumrah, but the replays showed a no ball. India’s frustration continued as Lyon took a brace to bring up the 50-run partnership of the final wicket before getting a four off an edge on last ball of the day, as an exciting day of Test cricket came to an end.

Brief Scores: Australia 474 and 228/9 in 82 overs (Marnus Labuschagne 70, Nathan Lyon 41 not out; Jasprit Bumrah 4-56, Mohammed Siraj 3-66) lead India 369 in 119.3 overs (Nitish Kumar Reddy 114, Yashasvi Jaiswal 82; Scott Boland 3-57, Pat Cummins 3-89) by 333 runs

(IANS)

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