MELBOURNE: Indian captain Rohit Sharma has backed Virat Kohli to overcome his problems with deliveries outside the off-stump in Australia, saying on Tuesday that players of his calibre always find a way to succeed.

Kohli arrested a long run of poor form with an unbeaten century in the first Test in Perth but has frequently chased balls moving away from his stumps in the current five-match series, resulting in his dismissal.

“Modern-day greats will figure out their own ways [to deal with the issue],” Rohit told reporters ahead of the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne.

Rohit’s own batting frailties in the longest format have been laid bare in recent matches. The captain has managed scores of three, six and 10 since rejoining the team for the second Test following the birth of his son.

His move to the middle order has done little to inspire confidence but Rohit was tight-lipped about a potential switch back to the opening slot where he can be devastating.

“Let’s not worry about that. I think ‘who bats where?’ is something that we need to figure out within ourselves. It’s not a thing I should be discussing in every press conference.

“Whatever it takes for our team to look good or gives us the best chance to succeed, we’ll try and do that.”

After winning the first Test by 295 runs, India crashed to a 10-wicket defeat in Adelaide before battling to a draw in the rain-hit third match in Brisbane.

“At 1-1, I think it’s a fair reflection,” Rohit added.

“Both teams have played solid cricket and these two Tests are going to be so important for both teams.

“We want to break it down to Melbourne and focus on what we can achieve here, get things right and play well.”

India added uncapped Mumbai all-rounder Tanush Kotian to the squad for the final two tests after ruling out the inclusion of seamer Mohammed Shami due to a knee injury.

Rohit was coy Tuesday on how his team will line up for the Boxing Day, with the option of a second spinner on the table.

Temperatures are forecast to reach 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) on Thursday, and the Melbourne Cricket Ground curator said during the week he expected the pitch to offer plenty for the fast bowlers.

But Rohit left the door open to a second spinner.

“Whatever we have to do to make the best possible XI in these conditions, we will do that — whether that is playing an extra spinner or not,” he said.

With off-spinning all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin announcing his immediate retirement from international cricket after the third Test in Brisbane, Ravindra Jadeja is expected to keep his place.

Washington Sundar is the other spin option.

India has been carried this series by pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah, who has tormented Australia almost single-handedly, with the other quicks not offering as much menace.

Speedster Akash Deep replaced the underperforming Harshit Rana in Brisbane and is set to play again along with Mohammed Siraj and Nitish Kumar Reddy should the second spin option not be taken.

Konstas TO MAKE DEBUT

Teenager Sam Konstas will make his Test debut in the cauldron of the Boxing Day Test, coach Andrew McDonald said on Tuesday.

Konstas, 19, was brought into the squad at the expense of Nathan McSweeney after Australia’s top order struggled for runs in the first three Tests of the series.

“He’s composed, relaxed, knows his game is in a good place at the moment, he’ll play Boxing Day,” McDonald told reporters at the MCG.

“We said from the get-go that age was no barrier. And what he’s shown is an array of shots, the ability to put pressure back onto opponents and he gets his opportunity.

“We’re really excited for him, Boxing Day, the biggest stage. He might as well get that one out of the way early.”

With bowlers, particularly Indian pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah, having had the upper hand in the series so far, McDonald said switching McSweeney for Konstas was a tactical move.

“We want to throw a different challenge at India at this point in time,” he said.

“We believe Nathan is good enough for Test level. We weren’t sure about how the top order was functioning. We challenged ourselves for that decision. Whether it works or not, time will tell (but) we’re really confident that Sam can do the job.”

McDonald was also confident Travis Head, who has scored 409 runs with two centuries in the first three Tests, would be fit to play despite a quad strain preventing him from training on Monday.

“Has he got some things to work through? Yeah, he has,” McDonald said.

“There’s no concern at the moment. Has he been officially ticked off? I’m not sure. I didn’t see the back end of his training session there, but I’m pretty confident he’ll play.”

While McDonald said captain Pat Cummins would reveal the rest of the Australia line-up for the match on Wednesday, he all but confirmed that Scott Boland would come in for the injured Josh Hazlewood in the pace attack.

“I don’t think I’m coming to the ground on Boxing Day if Scotty’s not in the 11,” he joked.

Published in Dawn, December 25th, 2024