Yashasvi Jaiswal's much anticipated Border-Gavaskar Trophy series debut ended in heartbreak as he lasted only a few deliveries.
Mitchell Starc produced a beauty on a fuller length, just outside the off-stump, with the extra bounce unique to Perth.
Jaiswal, eager to drive on the up, played with hard hands, resulting in a thick edge flying to debutant Nathan McSweeney at gully.
While Jaiswal's dismissal came quickly, Devdutt Padikkal endured a torturous stay at the crease, consuming 23 deliveries before falling to Josh Hazlewood. The left-hander battled against Starc's relentless probing, facing 17 balls with eight instances of being beaten or edging unconvincingly.
Hazlewood eventually ended Padikkal's innings with a classic Test match dismissal. The ball, angled across from over the wicket, tempted Padikkal to play defensively for fear of it straightening. Instead, it held its line and kissed the outside edge, landing safely in Alex Carey's gloves.
The twin failures of left-handers Jaiswal and Padikkal on the opening day of the Perth Test led to inevitable scrutiny of India's new-look top order.
'Jaiswal is too talented to be written off after one bad innings. He'll bounce back. The real test is how he handles the second innings,' one fan tweeted.