Virat Kohli faces Jasprit Bumrah as star India duo skips warm-up match, toils hard in nets ahead of pink-ball Test
A fan video posted on X saw Jasprit Bumrah and Virat Kohli facing off against each other in the nets in Canberra.
India’s preparations for the pink ball Test in Adelaide continue in full flow, with crucial team members practicing for the day-night match alongside the ongoing tour match against the Prime Minister’s XI at the Manuka Oval. A pair of fan-captured videos from the nets at the Manuka Oval saw India’s lead bowler Jasprit Bumrah bowling to their star batter Virat Kohli, as both players look to play significant roles at the Adelaide Oval.
With India looking to make sure they do everything in their ability to take a 2-0 advantage in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy and take a potentially decisive lead in the series, the continued form of centurion in the first Test Kohli and strike bowler and five-fer hero Bumrah will be crucial.
A video shared to social media sees Bumrah using the pink ball to bowl to Kohli, who is able to fend off the stand-in captain for India with a defensive stroke.
Bumrah was rested during the bowling effort against the PM-XI, expected to play an extremely significant role in the Test proper. Harshit Rana continued his strong form with a 4-wicket performance, re-asserting himself as one of the favourites for a role in the pace battery in Adelaide following his Test debut in Perth earlier this month.
India's batting order still in the air
Meanwhile, it is unclear if Kohli will bat as India look to chase down 241 runs in their allotted 46 overs, with the game shortened to a one-day affair after the first day was rained out in Canberra.
Interestingly, KL Rahul and Yashasvi Jaiswal continued to open the batting for India, with Rohit Sharma not appearing to open the batting despite having missed the Perth Test match and in desperate need of regaining his form in red ball cricket. Shubman Gill came in at number three, with his batting position also a question mark for Gautam Gambhir and company, while captain Rohit came in at Kohli's typical batting position of number four.
Alongside Rana, Australian teenager Sam Konstas was one of the players with the most to take away from the PM-XI performance, batting aggressively and strongly at the top of the order to score a century against a top-quality Indian bowling lineup. With Nathan McSweeney struggling on his Test debut in Perth, Konstas will be eyeing a Test debut opening the batting some time in the series.
