BGT: Pant, Jaiswal ensure India remain unscathed as Australia push for win (Day 5, Tea)

Melbourne [Australia], December 30 (ANI): In pursuit of a herculean 340-run total, Rishabh Pant and Yashasvi Jaiswal ensured India walked out of the second session unscathed on Day 5 of the fourth Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia in Melbourne on Monday.
As both teams went for Tea, India's scoreboard read 112/3, 228 runs away from victory, with Jaiswal and Pant unbeaten with scores of 63(159) and 28(93), respectively.
Despite losing three wickets in a flurry towards the end of the first session, Jaiswal and Pant kept at it in the second to push India's case in a gripping Test at the MCG.
As the ball started to wear out, boundaries started to come in more frequently compared to the first session. Pant, known for his explosiveness, exhibited a flawless defensive stance.
There were patches of scoreboard constantly ticking and then runs becoming scarce. Jaiswal brought up his back-to-back fifty in the fourth Test with a sublime four.
On the other hand, Pant went against his nature. He continued to show a defensive side of him that has hardly been seen since he burst out into Test format.
Australia captain Pat Cummins took everyone by surprise by handing the ball to Marnus Labuschagne, who resorted to a short ball ploy in the final over before Tea.
Pant remaiend undaunted and decided to leave the ball untouched on its way towards the wicketkeeper. Irrespective of the flow of runs, the duo successfully ensured that India ended the session unscathed.
Earlier in the day, it didn't take much time for India to take the first steps towards chasing down the imposing 340-run total. In the beginning minutes of Day 5, Bumrah cleaned up Nathan Lyon (41) by nipping it back into the right-handed batter.
As fans occupied the seats at the MCG, hoping to expect a T20 brand of cricket in Test colours, India decided to take a different route.
When a swashbuckling performance was expected from India skipper Rohit Sharma's bat, the seasoned opener decided to walk on a defensive path.
With the threat of new ball looming all over the Indian side, Rohit and Jaiswal decided to tread with caution to negate the potential early damage.
Rohit's back and front foot defence remained impeccable, while Jaiswal's miss and hit story against Mitchell Starc continued at the other end.
Before the drink's break, India looked well in control and showed signs of charging at the Australian bowlers as the ball relatively got old.
But a small break took away the Indian skipper's concentration. In the battle of captains, it was Cummins who drew the first blood.
Rohit, who showed resolve to leave deliveries wide off stump, gave away a thick edge to Mitchell Marsh at gully while trying to flick away Cummins. Rohit's resistance ended with a score of 9(40).
Cummins ran rampant in front of an electric atmosphere at the iconic MCG. Just four balls later in the same over, Cummins sent in-form KL Rahul packing towards the dressing room.
Rahul's return trip to the Indian dugout was confirmed the moment he got caught up in two minds. He couldn't decide whether to leave or play as the ball continued to shape in from outside off.
Rahul eventually played it and edged it straight to Alex Carey, marking the end of Cummins' double-wicket maiden over.
Indian stalwart Virat Kohli, with determination in his eyes, stepped at the crease with Australia showing its hunger to settle things quickly. He tried to stay away from the temptation to drive away the ball, but eventually, he got swayed away.
A pitched-up delivery from around the wicket by Mitchell Starc did the trick. A delivery that Kohli would have left on any other day attracted him enough to go for a drive. The sound of edge echoed in the stadium, and Starc took off in celebration along with the entire MCG the moment Usman Khawaja completed the catch.
Australia caught the big fish for a cheap score of 5(29) as umpires decided to bring an end to the first session.
Brief Score: Australia 474 & 234 (Marnus Labuschagne 70, Nathan Lyon 41; Jasprit Bumrah 5-57) vs India 369 & 112/3 (Yashasvi Jaiswal 63*, Rishabh Pant 28*; Pat Cummins 2-19). (ANI)