By IANS
Perth : Australia, chasing 413 to win, were 142 for three wickets in their second innings on the fourth day of the third Test against India here Saturday. Ricky Ponting’s side, already 2-0 ahead in the four-match Test series, require 271 more to win, and time is no constraint.
At the break, Mike Hussey (39, 98 balls, 4x4s) and Michael Clarke (11, 28 balls, 2×4) were at the crease. They had added 25 runs for the fourth wicket after the fall of Ponting – the lone success for the Indians in the morning session.
Lanky Delhi pacer Ishant Sharma dismissed Ponting with a delivery that Australian the captain tried to push on the front foot but the ball kissed the edge of his bat on way to Rahul Dravid at first slip.
Frustratingly for the Indians, the Australians scored 77 runs in the two-hour morning session.
Australia had made 212 in their first innings while India scored 330 and 294 in their first and second innings respectively.
Earlier, Australia resumed at 65 for two, with Ponting on 24 and Hussey on five. They carried on confidently while the Indian pacers did not look as effective as earlier in the match.
Aussies added 74 for the third wicket to frustrate the Indian bowlers. Ponting and Hussey faced 23.3 overs and scored the runs at 3.14 per over. The skipper was the dominant partner as he scored 36 and Hussey 26.
Ponting and Hussey had come together at the fall of Phil Jaques’s wicket, at 43 for two, late Friday. By the time their partnership was broken the two left-hand-right-hand combination had taken their team to a solid position of 117 for three.