The fourth and final Test of the series between India and Australia began on Thursday in Ahmedabad, with the visitors posting 255/4 at the end of Day 1. Aussie captain Steve Smith had opted to bat after winning the toss at the iconic Narendra Modi Stadium, and Usman Khawaja was the star of the day for the visitors as he not only smashed a century, but also remained unbeaten at the end of the day, scoring 104*.
Khawaja held one end as wickets continued to fall on the other, and reached his century in the final over of the day with a brilliant four against Mohammed Shami. The Australian opener frustrated the Indian bowlers all day, however, and when there seemed no way to dismiss Khawaja, India also tried different ways to send the batter back to pavilion – one of which was seen in the 71st over of the game.
Shami, coming from around the wicket against Khawaja, beat him with a seething bouncer; while the opener barely ducked the delivery, he didn't realise a throw could come from the wicketkeeper's end as well. As Khawaja – who lost his balance and almost tripped while ducking the delivery – gained composure and sat on a knee, KS Bharat saw it as an opportunity to run the batter out from behind the stumps.
The ball, however, missed the wickets and hit Khawaja instead, who stared at Bharat in disbelief. The wicketkeeper, then, sprinted towards Khawaja to apologize for the throw as the former shared a laugh. Virat Kohli, who was standing at the slip position, was surprised with the throw as well, while India captain Rohit Sharma had a disinterested look on his face.
{{/usCountry}}The ball, however, missed the wickets and hit Khawaja instead, who stared at Bharat in disbelief. The wicketkeeper, then, sprinted towards Khawaja to apologize for the throw as the former shared a laugh. Virat Kohli, who was standing at the slip position, was surprised with the throw as well, while India captain Rohit Sharma had a disinterested look on his face.
{{/usCountry}}The crowd did enjoy the passage of play, however, as they cheered on after Bharat sprinted towards Khawaja.
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While Bharat was justifiably the highest scorer in the Aussie innings on Day 1, Cameron Green adopted a more aggressive approach as he remained unbeaten on 49 at the end of the day, smashing 8 fours in a 64-delivery stay.
India are leading the four-match series 2-1 and require a win to secure a direct passage to the World Test Championship final; they have already retained the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.