By Nick Mulvenney
SYDNEY (Reuters) -India captain Jasprit Bumrah was absent after lunch on the second day of the fifth test on Saturday, but his team mates still ripped through the Australia batting order to dismiss the hosts for 181 at tea.
Television pictures showed fast bowler Bumrah, who has been the most influential player in the five-match series, leave the ground for medical scans about an hour after the first break of the day.
Prasidh Krishna (3-42) and Mohammed Siraj (3-51), though, stepped up in Bumrah’s absence and Nitish Kumar Reddy also chipped in with a couple of wickets as India took a first-innings lead of four runs.
Only Beau Webster was able to stall the Indian charge with a fine 57 in his maiden test innings – the first half century from either side on a wicket offering plenty for movement for the seam bowlers.
The writing was on the wall for the home side, however, when Krishna, in the team for the injured Akash Deep, found a bit of extra bounce and had the all-rounder caught at gully.
Tailenders Nathan Lyon and Scott Boland put on 15 for the final wicket to edge Australia closer to India’s first-innings tally of 185.
Boland had nine runs on the board when Siraj bowled him through the gate to end the home resistance.
Siraj had earlier removed teenager Sam Konstas (23) and Travis Head in the same over and Reddy inflicted another double blow on Australia, when he sent back Pat Cummins with the last ball of one over and Mitchell Starc with the first of his next.
Bumrah had dismissed Marnus Labuschagne in bright sunshine in the morning session to take his series tally to 32 wickets at an average of 13.06.
Steve Smith and Webster steadied the ship with a partnership of 57 for the fifth wicket, but the former was caught in the slips off Krishna for 33 just before lunch, five short of the 10,000 test run mark.
India, who dropped captain Rohit Sharma for the match, need to win in Sydney to square up the series at 2-2 and retain the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
(Reporting by Nick Mulvenney; Editing by William Mallard and Clarence Fernandez)
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