India 198 and 105 for 6 (Rawal 43*, Hamilton 3/32) track Australia 323 (Sutherland 129, Perry 76, Satghare 4/50) by 20 runs on Day 2 of the pink ball Test
Annabel Sutherland produced another superb all-round display as Australia stepped up their influence in the one-off pink-ball Test against India, leaving the visitors staring down a heavy defeat at the WACA Ground in Perth on Saturday.
Read the full article
Australia vs. India, Pink Ball Test Day 2: The best of Perth
India ended the second day on 105/6 in 29 overs in their second innings, still trailing Australia by 20 runs after Lucy Hamilton and Sutherland struck regularly at lights out to force the hosts firmly in control.
Earlier in the day, Sutherland anchored Australia’s first innings with an impressive 129 off 171 balls, helping the hosts post 323 in 90.4 overs to take a 125-run lead. In sweltering heat that touched 40 degrees Celsius, Sutherland made the challenging WACA surface look much more manageable than most of the batting over the two days.
It was her third Test century in a row and continued her remarkable record at the venue where she scored a memorable 210 against South Africa two years ago. The 23-year-old’s four Test hundreds are now the most by an Australian in women’s Test cricket, taking her average to 89.37 after just 10 innings.
Sutherland found valuable support from Ellyse Perry, who put up a patient 76, as the pair ensured Australia built a strong platform after early resistance from the Indian bowlers. The visitors were impressed on debut by Sayali Satghare, who took 4/50 to prevent Australia from running away with an even bigger total.
India quickly wrapped up Australia’s remaining wickets in the morning session. Satghare removed Alana King with a crisp cover dive to her left before Hamilton was dismissed soon after, allowing India to complete the innings within the first few overs of the day.
However, India’s second innings got off to a disastrous start. Darcie Brown struck early on Smriti Mandhana, rattling the middle stump to give Australia an immediate boost.
Hamilton then came through with a decisive spell under the lights. She first released Shafali Verma who was clinging to her and trying to move away from her body. In her next spell, Hamilton struck again when Jemimah Rodrigues mistimed a scoop and was caught in the gully at her feet.
Sutherland soon joined the act and removed Harmanpreet Kaur. The Indian skipper briefly threatened to counter-attack with a couple of boundaries before going to second slip where the catch was taken safely.
India’s middle order soon disintegrated further. Hamilton bowled Deepti Sharma through the wicket and then had Rich Ghosh caught behind after a successful review to leave India on 82/6.
Amidst the collapse, Pratika Rawal offered resistance with a composed 43 not out from 84 balls, hitting six boundaries. She found some support in Sneh Rana, who remained unbeaten in the 14th over as the pair ensured India avoided further damage in front of the stumps.
But with India still trailing with just four wickets in hand, Australia are firmly on course to seal a commanding victory when play resumes on day three.
– The end
Issued by:
Saurabh Kumar
Published on:
07 March 2026 20:01 IST
