67th over: India 215-9 (Bumrah 1, Akash 0) Even with Josh Hazlewood unable to bowl and sidelined for the series, Australia want this follow-on. Starc greets Bumrah with a wide and the batter takes one of his own from the second ball, helping it to fine leg. Starc is into his 22nd over and has 3-75, shaded only by his skipper who has 4-54 from 17 overs. Starc finishes with four dots as India chase 31 to avoid the follow-on.

WICKET! Jadeja c Marsh b Cummins 77 (India 213-9)

66th over: India 209-7 (Jadeja 77, Bumrah 0) Cummins cometh for a 17th over. And he squares up Jadeja and catches the edge… but it flies over slips and runs for FOUR. Now he drives magnificently to long-off but doesn’t risk the run. Cummins angles another one in at the ribs and Jadeja is bamboozled but keeps it out. In comes the field for the final two deliveries. Batters confer. Does Jadeja chance a boundary or tap a single? It’s short and wide but his flick over first slip doesn’t connect. What’s Cummins’ final card?

65th over: India 209-7 (Jadeja 73, Bumrah 0) This strange Test is at as curious crossroads. So too Ravi Jadeja, a natural swordsman with a penchant for big hitting. Does he a) play his natural game and go down blazing, or b) stay calm and slowly steer India past the follow-on with 44 runs? Happily, he opts for the former! He steps down and slots Lyon for SIX. Great shot! And now a single to retain strike. Smart batting!

64th over: India 202-7 (Jadeja 66, Bumrah 0) Jasprit Bumrah, destroyer with the ball, is now India’s defender with the bat. For now Jadeja has the strike to Cummins who slides two past the bat before bouncing one past his eyebrows. What’s next? Runs! Jadeja drives to mid-off for a single. What has Cummins got for Bumrah, a master bowler with 185 Test wickets but only 300 Test runs from his 43 Tests at an average of 6.97? Two dots.

WICKET! Siraj c Carey b Starc 1 (India 201-8)

64th over: India 201-7 (Jadeja 65, Siraj 1) Good work by the umpires to resume a few minutes earlier and make up for all the time lost to rain. Five dot balls but Starc’s speed is rising with each one…

And we’re back!

63rd over: India 201-7 (Jadeja 65, Siraj 1) BIG NEWS BREAKING: Josh Hazlewood has sustained a right side calf strain and will likely play no further part in the Border-Gavaskar series. In more good news for India, they have a first-innings score of 200+ for the first time this series. And in a further blow to Australia, it’s raining again and players are leaving the field. It will be a very despondent Australian dressing room, I’d imagine.

That will be tea, folks. Back shortly (we hope).

62nd over: India 201-7 (Jadeja 65, Siraj 1) Almost a run out! Jadeja had tried to whip Cummins square on the first ball but refused the run for fear of exposing Siraj. But he thought twice next ball and doubled down by chasing two. The throw from midwicket was fast and Labuschagne whipped off the stumps as Sirjaj dived at the bowler’s end. CLOSE! The bat’s toe is in the air but the shoulder may be grounded… and he’s safe! Only a Tally-Ho in it through. Cummins has the eye of the tiger now and beats Jadeja’s bat again next ball. Jadeja tries to fight fire with fire and slashes wildly for three. Siraj takes another risky single to get off his duck and another run out chance goes begging as Cummins’ throw goes wide. A bouncer is met with a beligerent swipe to finish an eventful over.

61st over: India 195-7 (Jadeja 60, Siraj 0) Fantastic cricket by Australia. They starved Jadeja of strike and honed in on the youngster Reddy. Starc and Lyon built pressure before Cummins brought himself on and got the prize with good captaincy and great bowling. India now trail by 250 and still need 51 to avoid the follow-on. Mohammed Siraj is the new batter and the pantomime villain of this series will be under huge pressure as Australia go for the jugular here.

WICKET! Reddy b Cummins 16 (India 194-7)

60th over: India 192-6 (Jadeja 59, Reddy 16) Here comes Pat Cummins and Reddy is beaten by the first and flashes at the second. The ball runs quickly away and Lyon does well to cut it off on the ropoe and keep it to two runs. A stern examination coming for Reddy from the Australian skipper here. Australia need something. Can Postman Pat deliver?

59th over: India 192-6 (Jadeja 59, Reddy 14) Lyon has Reddy pinned. The youngster has 41 and 38* in Perth, 42 and 42 in Adelaide and a wicket in each Test into the bargain– a fantastic start to his career. He sneaks a single from the last.

58th over: India 191-6 (Jadeja 59, Reddy 13) Reddy fans a single first ball – an important one given Starc’s attack on him these past overs. Jadeja digs out a yorker before defending one square. He pinches a single and thinks about another but Josh Inglis, in the field for Hazlewood, pounces on it. A flurry of activity now as Starc goes up for an LBW, thinking it’s hit toe first. Meanwhile Reddy connects with bat and takes off for a run. Starc is muttering but Cummins can’t be convinced to review it.

57th over: India 188-6 (Jadeja 58, Reddy 11) That Starc maiden has smothered India and now Lyon sniffs an opportunity on leg stump against Reddy. Australia’s close in fielders are starting to chirp, sensing the moment. Reddy drives the final ball to long on for a single which puts him on strike to Starc next over. Could that be part of the plan?

56th over: India 186-6 (Jadeja 57, Reddy 10) Starc has his speed up to 140kph as India seek 60 to dodge the follow-on. Reddy doesn’t like it. He sets off for a single but is sent back by Jadeja as Labuschagne lunges and backhands a throw at the stumps. Starc rips a bouncer at almost 142kph which Reddy evades. He wants another single from the next but Marnus is quickly onto it again to make it a maiden.

55th over: India 186-6 (Jadeja 57, Reddy 10) As Lyon wheels in again, the Jadeja-Reddy partnership has reached 43 from 71 balls. More spin and bounce evident for Australia’s premier offie now and Jadeja sweeps to nullify both. A single to midwicket and Reddy drives another to long-on.

54th over: India 184-6 (Jadeja 56, Reddy 9) Starc to Jadeja and the first ball is wide and whacked square for a single. Nitish Kumar Reddy, the 21-year-old from Visakhapatnam, debuted in this series after hot form in the IPL. He’s done well for his nine runs so far today, calm and resolute with a nice arsenal of shots. He steps down and drives handsomely but straight to Labuschagne. Starc’s riposte is a bouncer which the youngster easily evades.

53rd over: India 183-6 (Jadeja 54, Reddy 9) After Starc completes the solitary delivery remaining from his over, Nathan Lyon gets things under way by wafting one outside off stump for Jadeja to swat away for two runs backward of point. Bit of spin there for the GOAT. Can he summon it again and gobble up this wagging India tail? We still have spitting rain coming down at the Gabba.

Players are taking the field and India are resuming at 180-6, a massive 265 runs behind Australia’s total and still need 66 runs to avoid the follow-on.

Josh Hazlewood has been spotted in the Australian dugout glumly doing a crossword. Doesn’t look like he’ll be bowling this arvo.

Happy days! The covers are coming off and we are set to restart at 3.30pm. Tea will now be taken at 5.30pm AEST with a minimum 38.1 overs to be bowled today.

Ravi Jadeja, possibly the world’s greatest allrounder, was left out of India’s Test side for the first two matches of this Border-Gavaskar series. Recalled for this Gabba Test, the lavishly-tattooed 36-year-old has shown selectors what they’ve been missing with a fighting half-century from 82 balls in this innings. He brought up the milestone with typical flair just before this latest rain break.

Things are looking up at the Gabba. Rain is easing and we have blue skies…

Cricket is the No 1 sport in India by a country mile but the country has a new hero in the form of newly-crowned world chess champion Gukesh Dommaraju. The 18-year-old this week became the youngest champion in the sport’s history, defeating China’s Ding Liren in the final game of their FIDE World Championship match in Singapore.

The “Tendulkar of Chess” met with an incredible reception at Chennai airport.

Good news from the Gabba: blue sky is breaking through.

Bad news from the Gabba: it’s still raining pretty hard.

Speaking of part-timers… here’s one of the all-time bowling performances from one of the all-time great batters: Allan Border’s 11-for at the SCG against West Indies in 1988/89 with what AB used to call, in typically humble style, his “left-arm nothings”.

Rain continues to fall at the Gabba but in Sydney it’s been scorching weather – and cricket. The Harbour City played host to a thriller in the opening round of the Big Bash (BBL|14) where the Sydney Sixers took on the Melbourne Renegades at the SCG.

With Josh Hazlewood injured and Mitchell Marsh still not 100%, captain Pat Cummins may look to his part-timers in order to give his frontline attack a breather.

Here are his options – who would you go to first?

Marnus Labuschagne – 13 Test wickets at 61.55 (Best 3-45)

Travis Head – 12 Test wickets at 34.58 (Best 4-10)

Steve Smith – 19 Test wickets at 53.05 (Best 3-18)

The covers are back on at the Gabba. A passing shower or hard rain? I’m calling the experts to find out…