Australia close in on Test victory after Head hundred

Border-Gavaskar Trophy, second Test, day two, Adelaide

India 180 (Reddy 42; Starc 6-48) & 129-5 (Pant 28*; Cummins 2-33)

Australia 337 (Head 140; Bumrah 4-61)

India trail by 29 runs

Scorecard

Australia's bowlers backed up a majestic century from Travis Head on his home ground to put the hosts in a strong position to win the second Test against India.

Head played in a typically carefree manner on day two at the Adelaide Oval as his 140 off 141 balls provided the bulk of Australia's first-innings 337 in reply to India's 180.

Mohammed Siraj eventually dismissed Head as he collected 4-98, but it came too late for India who struggled to wrestle any kind of momentum on a second successive day of dominance for Australia.

Marnus Labuschagne's dogged 64 had earlier laid the platform for the hosts while the ever-dependable Jasprit Bumrah finished the pick of India's bowlers with 4-61.

Faced with batting the best part of an entire session under floodlights against a pink ball, India's top order wilted in the face of some skilful bowling - spearheaded by Scott Boland.

Australia captain Pat Cummins removed KL Rahul with a short ball before a disciplined fourth-stump line saw Boland snare two of India's star performers from their emphatic first Test win in Perth.

Yashasvi Jaiswal and Virat Kohli were both drawn into defensive pokes at deliveries on an awkward length from Boland.

Mitchell Starc then found some of the swing which had brought him career-best Test figures of 6-48 on day one to remove Shubman Gill.

Cummins returned to bowl counterpart Rohit Sharma for six shortly before stumps with India still 29 runs adrift and Australia well placed to level the five-match series at 1-1 on day three.

Home favourite Head thrills crowd

This was a red-letter day for Adelaide-born Head as he scored a stunning century in front of a packed crowd on familiar territory.

It was a buccaneering innings full of trademark shots square of the wicket as he cut, dabbed, pulled and effortlessly flicked his way to three figures.

In fact 113 of his runs came either side of the stumps as India's bowlers fed two of his strongest scoring areas.

There were, however, occasional moments of good fortune during a knock which was completely out of kilter with the way most of Australia's players have approached this match.

Head smashed Ravichandran Ashwin for a towering six straight down the ground in the 68th over, then attempted to do it again next ball but hit it skywards, only for Siraj to shell a diving catch.

He was on 76 at the time and Australia's position in this Test match might not look so rosy had that chance been held.

It is one of Head's strongest qualities, though, that such moments do not faze him, and he continued in a cavalier vein for the remainder of his time at the crease.

He brought up his century with a nudge into the leg-side off Siraj, reaching the milestone off 111 deliveries, celebrating by rocking his bat in a nod to his newborn son before saluting the crowd.

There is certainly something about batting on home turf which appeals to the South Australian. He has scored 634 runs in nine Test innings at the Adelaide Oval, with three centuries.

At 79.25 that is nearly double his career Test average of 41.96.

The 30-year-old whipped Siraj stylishly off his legs for six to reach 140 off as many deliveries, before he was finally undone a ball later when the India seamer yorked him.

There was then a terse verbal exchange with Siraj who, rather bizarrely given India's predicament, opted to give Head a send-off. The Aussie batter lingered for a moment, giving as good as he got before walking off.

India wilt as Boland sticks to his strengths

The old cricket adage goes that you cannot win a Test match in a session, but you can certainly lose one.

When India head coach Gautam Gambhir scribbles down in his notepad what has gone wrong for them here then a poor showing under the floodlights will surely be top of the list.

Nathan McSweeney and Labuschagne pulled down the shutters and were fixated on survival in a near-parallel situation in the night session on day one.

Australia ended the day just one wicket down and it earned the right for Head to make hay in more favourable conditions.

By contrast, India collapsed as the top-order failings from their recent series whitewash against New Zealand resurfaced.

Jaiswal (77.41), Rahul (70.00) and Gill (93.33) all had impressive strike rates but left or shouldered arms to a grand total of four balls between them.

It might be out of fashion, but a more circumspect approach would have served them better in this scenario.

That is take to nothing away from Australia's attack, who made the most of the conditions and stayed patient rather than chasing wickets.

Nobody embodied that more than Boland, who is playing his first Test since July 2023 because of an injury to Josh Hazlewood.

Boland's persistence outside off stump delivered the wickets of Jaiswal and Kohli and even when faced with the bombastic Rishabh Pant he was not ruffled.

More wickets from the 35-year-old on day three and Australia's selectors might face a dilemma for the third Test.

'Got a little bite back from me!' - reaction

Australia centurion Travis Head to TNT Sports: "I am playing well and took my chances here and there. At certain stages they bowled really well. It was about making good decisions around where I was going to score.

"I played well in some moments in the innings. It's nice to put the guys in a really good position with the game on fast forward at the moment.

"The cradle celebration? My son was born a few weeks ago and did the same celebration when I made some runs after my daughter was born so would have copped some stick if I had not done it again."

On his exchange with Siraj, Head added: "I said 'well bowled' but he thought otherwise when he pointed me towards the sheds. He got a little bite back from me!

"Slightly disappointed with the way that transpired. It is what it is. If they want to react like that, and if that's how they want to represent themselves, then so be it."