India didn't get off to the best start as they aimed to chase down Australia's massive first-innings total of 474. Captain Rohit Sharma, who surprisingly moved himself back to the top of the order despite his recent struggles, was out for just 3 runs at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.

The Border-Gavaskar Trophy campaign for India is looking shaky, even after a solid start. Things took a turn for the worse when Australia’s lower order piled on over 160 runs, leaving India in a tough spot at 8-1 after Rohit fell to Pat Cummins early in the second innings.

Rohit's dismissal was yet another letdown; he half-pulled, half-flicked a harmless delivery from Cummins, sending a simple catch straight up for Scott Boland to grab at midwicket. With mounting pressure on both his captaincy and batting, social media wasted no time reacting to Rohit's ongoing struggles in the latter half of 2024.

India's middle order is working to bring the innings back to life

Yashasvi Jaiswal and KL Rahul, who was surprisingly moved down to number three despite being India’s top performer this series while opening, started to rebuild the innings with a solid partnership of 43 runs. Unfortunately, KL's innings came to an end thanks to a stunning delivery from Cummins, who hit the middle stump before the ball held its line and knocked back the off stump just before tea.

India finds themselves in a tough spot again after losing a couple of quick wickets with the new ball. They’ll need Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, and Rishabh Pant to step up and make some big contributions. With three all-rounders in the lineup, the team will want to avoid putting too much pressure on players like Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar, and Ravindra Jadeja, who, while dependable, aren’t full-time batsmen.

On the other hand, Rohit will be eager to shake off another early dismissal and make a significant score when India has to chase later in this Test, as the outcome of the match and the series could hinge on his performance at the MCG.

HOW DID YOU LIKE THIS ARTICLE? CHOOSE YOUR EMOTICON!