WATCH: Mohammad Shami cleans up Marnus Labuschange with a ripper in WTC final 2023

Mohammad Shami broke through Marnus Labuschagne’s defence on Day 1 of the WTC final between India and Australia at The Oval in London and hit off the first ball he bowled down after lunch to give India the advantage.

Especially with the ball flying and seaming about in the first session, the Indian pace spearhead was guilty of bowling a little bit too short. Shami grabbed the ball from the other end and trapped Labuschagne with a brilliant delivery that dipped back in just in time from beyond the line of the off stump after Mohammed Siraj had resumed play following lunch.

Without shifting his feet, the anchor of Australia’s batting line-up pushed at it, and the next thing he knew, the bails were loose. He was dismissed for 26, which put his team in a little trouble. A video of his dismissal has been doing rounds on the internet.

Watch it here:

When Mohammed Shami knocked Labuschagne over 🔥#WTC2023Final #INDvsAUS pic.twitter.com/wcdsgUr4Hd

— CricTown (@CricTown_) June 7, 2023

Steve Smith held one end secured

Australia lost Usman Khawaja early in the WTC final after losing the toss and being put in to bat on a green deck under cloudy skies. Siraj managed to get him to nick behind for a duck. As they awaited their moments, David Warner and Labuschagne dug deep to show respect for the excellent deliveries.

The ball bounced quite unevenly and seamed about quite a bit. Warner seized on Umesh Yadav’s excessive freebies after his introduction to help the Australians advance. Eventually, Shardul Thakur choked him down the leg-side for 43, but India would have preferred more wickets at that point given the emergence of the sun.

After Labuschagne was dismissed by Shami immediately following lunch, Rohit Sharma and the company will be aiming to gain further ground on the Australian batting order. Smith is now joined in the centre by Travis Head, who has taken charge to get quick runs under his belt.