India are also dealt with twin injury blows as Ravichandran Ashwin and Rohit Sharma becoming unavailable. Kohli and his men need to work on three major issues if they have to replicate Adelaide success.
On December 10, history was created as India opened a Test series in Australia with a win. Now, Virat Kohli and Co will aim to double the advantage in Perth in the second Test starting Friday.
To make it 2-0 at Perth’s new stadium, India will have an uphill task. Already there is talk about the pitch being green and pacemen set to play a major role. Agreed that both sides have quality fast bowlers, but Australia will be itching to bounce back and draw parity in the four-Test rubber.
India are also dealt with twin injury blows as Ravichandran Ashwin and Rohit Sharma becoming unavailable.
Kohli and his men need to work on three major issues if they have to replicate Adelaide success.
In the final innings of the Adelaide Test, Ishant Sharma caught Aaron Finch in front of the wickets. Finch was given out LBW before he reviewed it, only to see that Ishant had over-stepped. These mistakes have cost India dearly in the past and can return to haunt them. Bowlers should ensure that they don’t bowl no-balls. Along with the discipline in line and length, the bowlers also need to keep an eye on the bowling crease, to avoid such mistakes.
Murali Vijay has performed decently with the bat in the past. He got his spot in the playing XI owing to young Prithvi Shaw's injury. He should have ideally performed post his inclusion in the team but his poor scores of 11 and 18 in Adelaide have put pressure on him, again. The player needs to rediscover his form and help India on a Perth pitch which is expected to be quick.
While Rishabh Pant has been good behind the stumps with his catches, saves and dives, his skills with the bat need a definite brush up. He needs to play according to the situation. He needs to show his teammates and the cricket world that he has a different game from must being aggressive. He needs to at the crease for longer periods of time. Similarly, the lower order needs to settle down on the pitch in order to maximise on the caliber of scoring around 30 odd runs. The temptation of playing lofty shots needs to be tackled. If Pant and the lower order tighten the defence, the difference could be seen on the scoreboard prominently.
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