All eyes on Rohit, Kohli ahead of second ODI

India faces Australia in the second ODI in Adelaide, with Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli under pressure to perform after a loss in the first match.

Kolkata: All eyes will be on Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli as India take on Australia in the second ODI at Adelaide on Thursday with the series on the line.

India's Rohit Sharma walks off the field after his dismissal during the first ODI against Australia in Perth. (AFP)

Not much should be read into the seven-wicket defeat in the first ODI that lasted less than 50 overs in a rain-interrupted game at Perth Stadium but Sharma and Kohli’s meagre returns have not allowed India to ease into one-day mode properly after their victorious Asia Cup campaign.

The only gains so far have been Nitish Kumar Reddy’s impressive cameo and the new-ball spell from left-arm quick Arshdeep Singh that had prevented Australia from running away with the match. But many boxes are still left to be ticked.

It’s in this backdrop that India arrive in Adelaide where they have authored one of their finest Test victories but also slumped to 36 all out in the 2020-21 Pink Ball Test and a 10-wicket defeat to England in the semi-final of the 2022 T20 World Cup. The football season just over, Adelaide has also switched to drop-in pitches like Perth, meaning the toss could be vital again since the weather has been quite wet and windy.

India batting coach Sitanshu Kotak certainly indicated that while claiming that Australia too would have been in trouble in Perth had they batted first. “When you don’t know how many overs you’re going to bat, it’s not easy to plan with four or five rain breaks. Going in and out every few overs, it’s difficult,” said Kotak on Wednesday. “I think it was more about the weather, to be very honest. In the last game, obviously, we lost a couple of wickets early, but I’m not really thinking too much about it.”

Among all the grounds in Australia, India have historically had better returns in Adelaide where the shorter square boundaries favour batters. India also haven’t lost an ODI here since February 2008, when they were defeated by Australia by 50 runs. The overall record too is stellar, India winning nine out of the 15 matches they have played at the Adelaide Oval since 1980. This is also a ground Kohli has been extremely prolific in. With the most Test runs by a non-Australian after Brian Lara, Jack Hobbs and Viv Richards, Kohli is set to play what could be his final international.

There has been rain though in Adelaide in the buildup, forcing the ground staff to use lamps to dry the pitch. And while there is no rain forecast on Thursday, expect Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Starc to use whatever moisture available from the pitch to make life difficult for the India batters. Win the toss or not, the onus thus is on India to bat well, with the spotlight naturally on Sharma and Kohli again.

Kotak was optimistic about them bouncing back from the Perth setback. “I don’t think there was any rustiness,” he said. “They played the IPL, and their preparation has been very good. I think both of them have a lot of experience. Even before coming to Australia, their preparations were excellent. So I think it’s too early to even think like that. They both look in very good touch to me. They batted really well yesterday. Every net session, their approach has been excellent.”

On the fitness front, Kotak said that the BCCI had been kept in loop through updates from the National Cricket Academy (NCA), adding that not much needed to be told to them anyway.

“We were very much aware of what preparations they were making and their fitness status. They sometimes go to the National Cricket Academy. We get updates and videos from there, what they’re doing, their practice routines, fitness work,” Kotak said. “But not always, to be very honest. You need to find the right time to intervene. With such senior players, you don’t want to intervene unless it’s necessary. If they are doing things right and you still try to get involved, it may not be the right thing to do always,” he said.

Carey, Zampa return

Australia’s second-choice wicketkeeper Alex Carey and spinner Adam Zampa are set to return, possibly to replace Josh Philippe and Matt Kuhnemann. Carey had missed the first ODI at Perth due to Sheffield Shield responsibilities and he will keep wickets given first-choice wicketkeeper Josh Inglis has been ruled out with a calf injury. Zampa was away for paternity reasons and his return will boost Australia’s bowling in the middle overs on a pitch that has always had something in it for the spinners.