A new opening combination made a difference for Australia, although not as per the usual intention. One solid batsman came back to form. The other showed attacking intent. A bit of rain and sluggishness from India allowed Australia to have one of their best days in the ongoing series against India after the Adelaide Test. Will Pucovski scored a fifty on debut, Marnus Labuschagne roared back to form with a superb fifty and Steve Smith showed attacking intent against his nemesis. At stumps on day 1, Australia were the happier team as they finished on 166/2 against India in a rain-curtailed opening day of the match at the Sydney Cricket Ground.
At the toss, the teams had a similar dynamic. Both handed debuts. Both welcomed their x-factor players. Will Pucovski and Navdeep Saini were the debutants of their respective teams while Rohit Sharma and David Warner were the X-men. Australia chose to bat in what looked like the best batting wicket of the series and Pucovski,…