India eked out a 91 run first innings lead that effectively clinched a series win with Virat Kohli scoring his first century since November 2019.

For much of the day the focus had been on Kohli reaching various milestones he had not passed for many months during a barren run. Overnight he was unbeaten on 59 with even the half-century his first in sixteen attempts.

The new ball was only five overs old at the start of play but Smith switched to an all spin attack after just one over of Cameron Green. Both Nathan Lyon and Todd Murphy managed to rap the pads a few times in the opening overs after getting the ball past the bat but not with enough accuracy for the umpires to become involved.

Having scored uncharacteristically slowly the previous day, there was a sense of more urgency to Ravi Jadeja’s batting during the first half hour and it proved to be his undoing. Having scored 28, he tried to get after Murphy but ended up chipping a simple catch to mid-on to end a 64 run fourth wicket stand.

Shreyas Iyer was due to come in next but was apparently suffering from lower back pain and had gone for scans so wicketkeeper Srikar Bharat stepped up the order.

If India were to have any chance of gaining the win that would ensure their place in the World Test Championship Final they needed to get the game moving. With two players in the middle who were desperate for runs and less likely to take risks it wasn’t the best scenario for the home team.

When Kohli moved into the eighties not long before lunch it was almost forgotten territory for him as 79 had stood as his highest score since his previous century.

When the interval came India had progressed to 4-362 having scored 73 runs in the 32 overs bowled. The pitch had shown no signs of breaking up as the bowlers continued to toil and the only intrigue at that point seemed to be on whether Kohli could break his century drought.

Not long after the break things livened up. Smith once again turned to Green who was clearly under instructions to try a short ball barrage. It badly misfired when his second over went for twenty one runs as Bharat ignored the three players back on the boundary and smashed consecutive sixes over their heads into the spectators. The next ball was cut hard to the point boundary to bring the growing crowd to their feet again. Most had come to watch Kohli but they were clearly enjoying this onslaught.

Each of the four wickets that Australia had taken had been in separate sessions and the middle one was no exception. Srikar Bharat had made 44 when he pushed forward and gave a simple bat-pad catch to Peter Handscomb at short leg as Lyon struck for the second time.

It was Lyon’s 55th dismissal in India, more than any other visiting bowler has managed as he passed Derek Underwood’s record.

Ten balls later, on 99, Kohli tucked a ball from Lyon to square leg, ran the single and while the spectators were exuberant he produced a rather subdued celebration.

It was in line with the performance. He had ground out his twenty eighth hundred, his first in 42 Test innings. It was his second slowest in the number of balls faced but with Iyer unable to bat it was just as important to the team as it was to Kohli himself.

Axar Patel, who has been in good form with the bat in this series, had joined him with the fall of Bharat’s wicket. The crowd was in raptures at being able to see their hero play alongside the local boy as Patel was born only 65 kilometres away. They weren’t to be let down.

When Starc came into the attack for the first time in the day Kohli drove his fourth ball for four. Astonishingly it was his first boundary in 162 deliveries.

The attention now started to switch away from Kohli’s milestones to the match situation.Could India possibly produce a win on this benign surface? If so it would earn a place at The Oval for the Final and no longer be dependent on Sri Lanka’s results in New Zealand.

By tea they were 5-472 and had reduced the deficit to only 8 runs.

Gradually during the final session the sixth wicket pair upped the tempo. Kohli had taken 241 balls to reach his hundred but his 150 came up only 72 deliveries later as he hit Green for consecutive boundaries either side of the wicket.

Meanwhile, Patel was taking on the spinners. Usman Khawaja was off injured after stumbling over the boundary advertising while trying to catch the first of these hit off Murphy.Matt Kuhnemann was then smashed for twenty two runs in two overs including three sixes over midwicket.

Smith replaced him with Starc who finally managed to break the 162 run partnership when he bowled Patel off an inside edge for 79.

India then lost their way a bit losing their last four wickets while only sixteen runs were added.

Ravi Ashwin was caught on the boundary for 7 while Umesh Yadav came down the ninety steps leading from the dressing room only to go back up them having been run out without facing a ball after getting a poor call from Kohli for a second run. It was a fine throw by Handscomb that produced a direct hit.

With Iyer unable to bat the last wicket pair was together and Kohli tried to shield Mohammed Shami from the bowling. After offering a tough chance to Handscomb on the boundary his wonderful innings was finally over when he fell in similar fashion to Murphy for 183.

It left Australia with just over fifteen minutes to face and, with the injury to Khawaja, it was Kuhnemann who was chosen to open the batting with Travis Head. The pair saw out six overs although Kuhnemann had a huge slice of luck when Bharat put down an edge to Ashwin’s last delivery.Australia were 3 without loss at stumps and trailed by 88 runs. So, with a draw or an Indian win as the only likely results it means that the home side will take the series either 2-1 or 3-1.

More to come.