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Ashwin destroys Australia as India win second Test

Ravi Ashwin has taken six wickets as India won a thrilling second Test in Bangalore to level the Border-Gavaskar series at 1-1.

Steve Smith's side were rolled for 112 early in the final session on day four, having been set a target of 188 after an inspired fightback with the ball from Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood.

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Australia crumbled in a collapse of 6-11 on Tuesday, unable to survive a pitch playing plenty of tricks and a chaotic series of events including a number of DRS dramas.

Tensions bubbled over throughout the contest at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, but the intensity lifted tenfold when captain Steve Smith fell for 28.

Ashwin took 6-41. Image: Twitter
Ashwin took 6-41. Image: Twitter

Smith seemingly looked to the changeroom as he mulled whether to review a plumb lbw dismissal, prompting a furious Virat Kohli to storm across the pitch and approach his counterpart.

Smith shuffled off. On-field umpires Nigel Llong and Richard Illingworth proceeded to lecture Kohli, as they did earlier in the day and also on day two of the game.

Earlier, Illingworth judged David Warner lbw on 17.

The vice-captain reviewed the verdict and replays appeared to show him being struck outside the line of off stump.

Warner's controversial dismissal. Image: Fox Sports
Warner's controversial dismissal. Image: Fox Sports

However, DRS bizarrely delivered a verdict of 'umpire's call' and Warner was given his marching orders.

Shaun Marsh was then wrongly given out lbw by Llong, but opted to walk off because he was wary of wasting the side's final review.

Marsh had a shocker. Image: Fox Sports
Marsh had a shocker. Image: Fox Sports

Ball-tracking replays confirmed it would have been overturned.

Australia were 6-101 at tea with 87 runs still required and victory a real possibility.

But Ashwin took control for the hosts, taking three of the final four wickets as the Aussies lost their final four scalps in quick succession.

Smith was booed during the post-match ceremony.

"We weren't up to it today but I'm proud of the way the boys have competed over the last four days," Smith said.

"It (the pitch) was quite hard to play ... but Test match cricket isn't supposed to be easy.

"A wicket like that, the umpires are going to have to make a lot of calls. They're there to do a job as well as they can.

"Everybody makes mistakes, not that I'm saying they did.

"It was a great Test match, it certainly ebbed and flowed."

Earlier in the day Starc and Hazlewood, who grabbed a career-best haul of 6-67, inflicted a scarcely-believable collapse of 4-8 in just nine deliveries to help bowl India out for 274.

The visitors had complete control of the contest after Nathan Lyon's record-breaking haul of 8-50 on day one but momentum shifted when Virat Kohli adopted a more pugnacious and vocal approach in the field on day two.

Australia arguably haven't been involved in such a consistently spiteful match since the 2014 series decider in Cape Town, when Faf du Plessis likened the opposition to a "pack of dogs".

Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ravichandran Ashwin, Smith, Steve O'Keefe, Starc and Hazlewood could all be dragged in front of Chris Broad, depending on how the match referee views a handful of flashpoints at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium.