David Warner lights up the Adelaide Oval

ADELAIDE: If it was disorienting before, it was dazzling after.
Just a few days back, a spooked David Warner had held on to Phillip Hughes' hand in the medicab at the SCG, hoping desperately for signs of life. On Tuesday at the Adelaide Oval, an emotional Warner took it upon himself to pull a shaken Australian cricket up by the bootstraps.
In a knock which spoke volumes of his temperament, Warner (145; 163b, 19x4) crafted a fitting tribute to his fallen teammate and bagged himself the most memorable day of his career.Looking on was the limited but persistent Indian bowling attack, which let things slip initially but got it right with the second new ball as the Aussies ended the day at 354/6.Mohammad Shami picked up Haddin off the last ball of the day to give the Indians hope going into Day Two.
Virat Kohli's captaincy debut was a trial by fire, and though he got most things right, the decision to stick to an around-the-wicket line in the initial part of the game may come back to haunt him.
With the flat Adelaide pitch offering bowlers no leeway, the Indian batsmen may just have a chance to pull their team back into the contest if the Aussie tail folds. Still hanging on was Steve Smith (batting on 72), and among Aussies, only Michael Clarke's gamble to play this game did not pay off.
The Aussie skipper was forced off the middle with back spasms and he was rushed to hospital soon after.
It may have been grim determination or mere nervous energy, but Warner grabbed the game by the scruff of the neck and didn't let go until he had proved a point. Both the new ball bowlers, Shami and Varun Aaron, choose to bowl around the wicket in a bid to deny Warner any width. They were often too short, however, and found no swing when they pitched it up.
Aaron's pace was impressive but little else. Warner was brutal through covers and backward point, hitting both Aaron and Shami for three fours each in the second and third overs.
His spirited approach raised the spectre of a hundred before lunch as Warner raced to 21 off 10 and the Virat Kohli-led Indians switched from Plan A to Plan B in double quick time. Seven of Warner's first 15 balls resulted in boundaries but the entry of a maiden over from Ishant Sharma, easily India's most effective bowler on the day, gave things a more usual, Test-match feel.
With Ishant looking dangerous, Warner tempered his slam-bang style with a more assured yet dominating approach, relying on his eye and bat swing to take the day away from India. Chris Rogers wasn't so lucky, nicking one to second slip where Shikhar Dhawan had a good day. Watson, greeted in the middle by a nasty Ishant bouncer which caught him wrong-footed, too didn't last long.
Debutant leg-spinner Karn Sharma was too full in his first few overs and though he improved after the initial case of nerves, Warner's easy pickings continued. Wrist spinners are, on paper, more effective on the hard Australian wickets but Karn looks far from the finished product.
He did manage to fox Warner, though, limiting the damage somewhat, but that was just a blip in the Aussie scoring radar till the second new ball did the trick. Both Aaron and Shami redeemed themselves with the three late strikes, but on this pitch, the batsmen have to be prepared to stare down a long chase.
The story of the day was Warner's unexpected knock. Those who suspected Australian cricket was faint-hearted would have been left eating their words.