Aussie 'toddler' mercilessly sledges Indian rival on day two at the SCG

Marnus Labuschagne opted to perch himself next to the batsmen and endlessly berate his rivals after falling short of a fifth Test century.

Matthew Wade was preferred to Travis Head in the Australian batting line-up. (Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)

The third Test between Australia and India is delicately poised after the second day of action at the SCG.

 

 

India is trailing by 242 runs with eight wickets in hand, with stalwarts Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara surviving a tough passage of play before stumps.

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Earlier, Steve Smith broke a three-year drought on home soil, scoring a long-awaited Test century in the first innings.

It was the first Test century by an Australian against India since 2017, and the 27th of Smith's career.

Smith finished on 131, while teammate Marnus Labuschagne fell agonisingly short of a triple-figure score, caught at first slip for 91.

Meanwhile, Australian batsman Matthew Wade copped plenty of criticism after needlessly throwing away his wicket in the morning session.

The hosts eventually crumbled to 338 all out, with Smith the last to depart following a superb piece of fielding from Indian all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja.

The Indian openers put on a crucial 70-run partnership before Australia’s seamers struck in the final session.

Josh Hazlewood claimed his 300th international wicket on his 30th birthday, removing Rohit Sharma for 26 caught and bowled.

Meanwhile, Labuschagne perched himself at short leg early in India's innings, repeatedly asking Shubman Gill a few friendly questions.

“Who is it? Come on who is it? Sachin? Virat? AB? Laxman, Laxman? Whose your favourite player?” Labuschagne asked.

Gill did his best to ignore the sledging, but eventually replied, "I'll tell you after the match.”

India is 2/96 at stumps, with play scheduled to continue on Saturday morning at 10am local time.