India vs Australia 2nd Test: Will Rohit Sharma Change His Batting Position?

We examine some of the most important questions for both teams ahead of the second test in Adelaide.

The second Test match of the Border-Gavaskar Test series between Australia and India is scheduled to take place in Adelaide. The test will be a pink ball. India leads the five-test match 1-0 going into the game after winning by 295 runs in Perth. As part of their 11-1 record in Test cricket at home, Australia has a remarkable 7-0 run and has never lost a Day/Night Test in Adelaide.

Also Read: Adelaide Test: Rohit Sharma Hints at Sacrificing Opening Spot, Shubman Gill’s Place in Doubt

We examine some of the most important questions for both teams ahead of the second test in Adelaide.

Where will Rohit Sharma bat?

India’s top worry going into the Adelaide Test may be this. With Rohit, who missed the first Test match of the series in Perth, assuming his customary position at the top of the order, the management shouldn’t have had any concerns. However, his replacement KL Rahul scored a crucial 77 in a record 201-run stand with Yashasvi Jaiswal in the Perth Test that he missed due to the birth of his second child. This left India questioning whether they really wanted to disrupt the opening combination that had set up the record 295-run victory. What does that mean for Rohit, then?

Shubman Gill, who also missed the first Test because of a thumb injury, can be dropped to No. 6 if he bats at No. 3, or vice versa.

Interestingly, Rohit hasn’t batted outside of the opening position in six years, with his most recent appearance coming at No. 6 during the 2018–19 Australian tour. Therefore, it is doubtful that the captain of India will feel uneasy batting in the middle order. Furthermore, if Sunday’s warm-up game in Canberra was any guide, Rohit batted at No. 4 in the absence of Virat Kohli and Rishabh Pant, while Rahul began with Yashasvi Jaiswal and Gill at No. 3.

Will Ravindra Jadeja or Ashwin play?

India will probably continue to use Washington Sundar as their only spinner because they are unlikely to make any changes in the bowling department. In addition, he hit a scorching 42 not out in the pink-ball warm-up game and took two wickets in the previous game, both in the second innings. Given that Ashwin last played in a SENA Test in January 2022 against South Africa in Cape Town, it is doubtful that his exile would end in Adelaide.

Also Read: ‘I Want to Play’: KL Rahul’s Bold Request Before India-Australia Day-Night Test

In the case of Harshit Rana, what about Akash Deep?

Rana took three wickets in the first innings of his Test debut in Perth, including the removal of Travis Head. The Delhi speedster caused a mini-collapse for the Prime Minister’s XI of Australia later in the pink-ball warm-up match by taking four wickets in six balls. India is hence unlikely to bench Rana in place of Akash Deep.

The Josh Hazlewood dilemma in Australia

Due to Hazlewood’s injury, Australia will likely have a serious bowling problem in Adelaide. Although there were some concerns expressed in the Australian media over the selectors’ decision to include the fast bowler in the pick-ball warm-up match, Scott Boland is most likely to replace him. In order to avoid giving the Indian hitters any clues about their strategy, they believed that Australia ought to have removed Boland from the match.

However, Mitchell Marsh’s fitness will be Australia’s biggest worry. The all-rounder may not bowl, according to sources, after dismissing injury worries to say he would play in the Adelaide Test. Beau Webster, an uncapped Tasmanian all-rounder, might thus be included in the starting lineup by the management.

last chance for Marnus Labuschagne?

Labuschagne amassed 3071 runs at 59.05 in his first 32 games, including 10 hundreds and 13 fifties. The Australian became the top-ranked player in Test cricket as a result of this run. But since the beginning of 2023, he has only amassed 1048 runs at an average of 31.75, scoring one hundred in 19 games.

Veteran cricketers and analysts have advised selectors to remove Labuschagne after his scores of 2 and 3 in Perth. However, considering his performance in Adelaide, where he amassed 574 runs in nine innings at 71.75, with three tons and a fifty, the management is probably going to give him one final opportunity. Labuschagne may be left off the team and forfeit the opportunity to play in front of his home crowd in Brisbane, though, if he fails once again.