Captain Smith starts tour with a ton to put Aussies on top

Captain Steven Smith started the tour in impressive fashion by compiling his 30th first class century to help Australia reach 211-2 at tea on the opening day of their warm-up game against India A here today.

Australia, 81 for two after having lost openers David Warner (25) and Matt Renshaw (11) before lunch, added 130 runs in the second session in 33 overs without losing any more wickets at the Brabourne Stadium.

At tea, Smith – who has scored 17 hundreds in 50 Tests – was on 107 in his 100th first class game, off 161 balls and in 199 minutes, inclusive of 12 fours and one six, while Marsh was on 59, which came in 160 minutes and 114 balls and also included 5 fours and one six.

Warner and Renshaw were both dismissed by first change home team medium pacer Navdeep Saini before the visitors recovered poise through the 156-run stand between right-handed Smith and left-handed Marsh in 40.5 overs.

Smith, who arrived at the crease at the fall of his deputy Warner in the 9th over of the innings, batted fluently and was hardly troubled by the bowling barring once when he edged left-arm spinner Shahbaz Nadeem short of the slip fielder when on 55.

He, otherwise, played the slow bowler with lot of confidence by using his feet well and also smacked him for an on-driven six soon after lunch. He completed his century in 154 balls with the help of 11 fours and a six in 186 minutes.

Marsh too took cue from his captain and began to play with increasing confidence to complete his half century in 86 balls and 131 minutes.

The third-wicket duo completed the century stand in 41.1 overs and in 140 minutes and looked well in control against a none-too-impressive bowling attack on a pitch that had eased out considerably in the afternoon session.

Earlier, Australia lost both the left-handed openers, vice-captain Warner and the tall England-born Renshaw in the pre-lunch session after they were put in to bat by India A captain Hardik Pandya.

For the home team, Delhi's Navdeep Saini was the most impressive bowler in a fine first spell of 6-2-13-2 while the other two medium pacers –- captain Pandya and Ashok Dinda -- could not extract as much help from the green-tinged pitch offering good bounce.

Shahbaz was given a long spell by skipper Pandya without making much of an impression after bowling 17 overs in which he gave away 71 runs without any wicket to his name.

Strangely frontline off-spinner Krishnappa Gowtham was not called upon to bowl a single over while part timer Akhil Herwadkar bowled seven overs for 23 runs.