Australia Takes Charge in Perth Series Opener Against India

Top performances by Australia's fast bowlers continued to apply pressure on India throughout the day. Josh Hazlewood led the pack by securing four crucial wickets, including that of Jasprit Bumrah and Harshit Rana, alongside the two he clinched in the morning phase. Mitchell Marsh and Pat Cummins closely followed up with two each in the post-lunch session, bringing India's batting line-up to a standstill.

The Indian team started the session confidently with Dhruv Jurel confidently driving on both fronts. Marsh outplayed him with a length ball that went straight to Marnus Labuschagne, while Washington Sundar fell prey to extra bounce just like Virat Kohli earlier, giving Marsh his second wicket of the session.

Rishabh Pant attempted to break through the dominant Australian bowling, charging down Pat Cummins to get a boundary at third man, but he and debutant Nitish Reddy couldn't hold out under relentless pressure from the Australian attack.

Compounded by controversial umpiring decisions and narrow misses, including a narrowly dropped catch of Nitish by Cummins, the session saw India dismissed for a low score under the expert bowling of Hazlewood, Cummins, and Marsh.

India's first day in Perth was marked by a series of misadventures, most notably the dismissal of KL Rahul after a controversial caught-behind decision and Pant's eventual dismissal to Cummins who had managed to switch his stance to over the stumps. Harshit Rana also fell victim to Hazelwood, his wicket being the result of a dynamic fielding effort from McSweeney and Labuschagne. The game beautifully demonstrated why Australia stands as one of the best fielding sides in the world.