Ahead of the day-night second Test against Australia at the Adelaide Oval, skipper Rohit Sharma confirmed he will bat in the middle order, with the team sticking to its opening combination of KL Rahul and Yashasvi Jaiswal.
In the absence of Rohit, who is away due to paternity leave with the birth of his second child in Mumbai, Rahul (77) shared 201 runs with Jaiswal (161) in the second innings for which India laid down a massive base for the thumping 295-run victory over Australia in Perth. "KL will open (in Adelaide). The way he batted and his partnership with Jaiswal was instrumental in that first test win.".
"The way he has batted outside India, he deserves it. I will bat somewhere in the middle. It was a fairly simple decision. Personally, it wasn't easy but for the team, it was an easy decision to make," said Rohit in the pre-match press conference.
Talking further about Rahul, who made 26 off 74 balls in the first innings and looked at ease as an opener in Perth, Rohit said him being comfortable alongside Jaiswal gave him a signal that they should be retained for opening in the pink-ball game in Adelaide. "I was at home with my newborn in my arms and I was watching how KL was batting. It was brilliant to watch. I felt that there's no need to change that now."
"Maybe sometime down the line, things may be different. I do not know. Going by everything that has happened and the form KL Rahul has shown abroad, he must have possibly become worthy of that spot as of now. Something which has helped us do really well in the first Test.".
"That big partnership on the other side, you know, with Jaiswal; probably, that's the Test match which we won here. And then when you come here in Perth and score 500 plus, that is such a huge check mark in the box," he further elaborated.
Washington Sundar's selection ahead of spin-bowling stalwarts like Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja in the first Test at Perth came as a surprise though the off-spin all-rounder still did well. Rohit added Ashwin and Jadeja will have a role to play in the five-match series, which India are currently leading 1-0.
"Washington came in on the last tour, scored crucial runs and took wickets. Unfortunately, he got injured. He is a solid all-rounder. The team gets confident with players like him. I just hope he stays injury-free. I only see his graph going up from here.".
"I wasn't there personally to break the news to Ashwin and Jadeja that they won't be playing at Perth. The management went with the best team they thought that suited that pitch. These two will play a role in the rest of the series. They have been massive to India's record in the past. We shall look at the pitches and decide," he concluded.
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