A wounded Australia roared back into the five-test series against India with a 10-wicket victory at their happy hunting ground in Adelaide on Sunday that saw them reclaim the lead in the World Test Championship (WTC) standings.

The hosts had crumbled to a comprehensive defeat by a depleted Indian side in the series opener in Perth that dented the pride of the reigning WTC champions.

However, led by their inspirational captain Pat Cummins, Australia steamrolled a full-strength India, reinforced by the return of their captain Rohit Sharma and batter Shubman Gill, in a little over two days to level the series at 1-1.

Mitchell Starc menaced with the pink ball and broke India’s back with his first innings 6-48 at the venue, where Australia now have a perfect 8-0 record in day-night tests.

His victims included Perth centurions Yashasvi Jaiswal and Virat Kohli.

Cummins led by example in the second innings, claiming 5-57 and scything through the lower order, but it was India nemesis Travis Head’s nearly run-a-ball 140 which proved decisive.

Head had smashed match-winning hundreds against India in the finals of the WTC and the 50-overs World Cup last year, and it was the familiar sight of the left-hander bashing the Indian bowlers once again.

“Again, one of those momentum shifts,” Cummins said in his assessment of Head’s knock at the batter’s home ground.

“The game could have gone either way when he walked out to bat and he just took it straight out of their hands.”

Australia will also be pleased with how opener Nathan McSweeney batted in only his second test, especially his battling 39 in the first innings.

Number three Marnus Labuschagne also showed signs of regaining form with a patient 64.

After taking flak from the loss in Perth, Australia’s dominant victory in Adelaide will considerably brighten the mood in the home camp before they head to Brisbane for the third test beginning on Dec 14.

“Last week, we lost a test match and we were apparently the worst test team ever,” said Labuschagne.

“This week, we’ve finished on day three with the series at 1-1, so we know how we’re going in there.”

Run Drought

The tourists’ chastening defeat in Adelaide will puncture the euphoria that had prevailed in the Indian camp after Perth.

Rohit’s run drought shows no signs of ending, even after he dropped down to the middle order where he scored three and six.

The India captain now has just one half-century and eight single-digit scores, including a duck against New Zealand in Pune, in his last 12 test innings.

It was a batting capitulation by India in Adelaide, lasting a mere 81 overs over two innings with none of their batters managing a half-century.

In the absence of Mohammed Shami, who is playing domestic cricket in India after recovering from an ankle injury but is not considered test-fit yet, India’s bowling appeared too reliant on the genius of Jasprit Bumrah.

India will be tempted to switch Rohit and opener KL Rahul in the batting order in Brisbane.

“We’re quite looking forward to it,” Rohit said of the third test.

“We just want to go out there and think about what we did right in Perth, and also what we did last time when we were here.”

Australia lost opener Usman Khawaja but took first day honours at the day-night second Test in Adelaide Friday after a Mitchell Starc onslaught saw India crumble to 180 all out.

At the close, the hosts were 86-1 with Nathan McSweeney not out 38 from 97 balls and Marnus Labuschagne on 20 after the visitors were dismissed on the cusp of tea after winning the toss and opting to bat.

A menacing Starc was India’s chief destroyer.

He gave the hosts a dream start in removing Yashasvi Jaiswal with the first ball of the match and ended with 6-48 — his best Test figures.

In reply, Australia weathered 10 overs of the pink ball at dusk before Jasprit Bumrah’s persistence paid off, finding extra movement and with it a thick edge from Khawaja (13) that carried to Rohit Sharma at slip.

Fellow opener McSweeney took 17 balls to get off the mark and had a life on three when dropped by wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant.

But he made the most of his fortune, showing maturity in his second Test, while Labuschagne survived a nervy start as he targets a big score after a lean spell.

India came into the clash riding high after a 295-run victory at the first Test in Perth, but Australia have a formidable record in Adelaide, winning all seven pink-ball Tests they have played at the venue.

The visitors retained Jaiswal and KL Rahul as openers in preference to Rohit, who missed the first Test on paternity leave and came in at six.

But the plan backfired as Starc sensationally trapped Jaiswal lbw from a swinging first ball, with the left-armer’s pumped-up celebration showing how much it meant.

Jaiswal scored 161 in his last innings.

The returning Shubman Gill then stroked two boundaries in an eventful first over.

But the runs dried up and Rahul was at the crease for 40 minutes without scoring when he was given out, caught behind off Scott Boland.

Rahul was walking off, but a no-ball was called and he survived.

Five balls later and he had another let-off, dropped by Khawaja.

Undeterred, he battled on before Starc wove his magic again to remove him for 37 with McSweeney holding a catch low at gully.

Virat Kohli roared back to form in Perth with an unbeaten century but he was no match for Starc this time, out for seven when Steve Smith collected a slip catch.

Gill weathered the storm, but his luck ran out just before the first break when he fell lbw on 31 to the relentless Boland.

Six wickets tumbled in the second session, including Rohit (3) and Pant (21).

Pant should have gone for five, but McSweeney spilled a sharp chance in the gully off Boland, in the side for the injured Josh Hazlewood.

But the 35-year-old got his reward four balls later, beating Rohit’s bat to trap him lbw.

Pant fell to a vicious climbing ball from Pat Cummins before a hostile Starc returned and took care of Ravichandran Ashwin (22) and Harshit Rana (0) in the space of four balls.

With India in trouble, Nitish Kumar Reddy took charge, clobbering two big sixes in one Boland over for his highest Test score of 42 before he and Bumrah fell to Starc and Cummins respectively.