Tests in the pink again

Rahane, who is expected to lead in the last three Tests after regular skipper Virat Kohli goes on paternity leave, also spoke about how pink ball’s increased pace off the pitch during the 40-50 minutes of the twilight session, will be the biggest challenge for any batsman.

“I think, we do really have a strong attack but yes we will definitely miss Ishant, being the senior fast bowler,” Rahane said during a virtual press conference. Ishant is recovering from a rib injury sustained during the IPL.

Rahane, however, is confident that despite Ishant’s absence, the pace attack comprising Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami will step it up against the Australians. “The guys who are here Umesh (Yadav), (Navdeep) Sani, (Mohammed) Siraj with Jasprit (Bumrah) and (Mohammed) Shami, they are all really good and experienced and they know how to bowl in these conditions,” he said. “...this is a new series starting with the Pink ball, so it is all about getting that momentum, but I do believe that we have the attack to get 20 wickets,” he said.

On the possible opening combination among the four available options (Mayank Agarwal, Prithvi Shaw, Shubman Gill and KL Rahul) and two options for wicketkeeping (Wriddhiman Saha and Rishabh Pant), Rahane said a decision will be taken on the eve of the match.

“See, we have still not decided what’s our combination going to be. We will sit tomorrow, there is another day to go, one more practice session to go, we will sit tomorrow and discuss what’s our combination,” Kohli’s deputy said.

“...but see whoever plays, it is going to be like, everyone is equally there, everyone is equally talented, whoever plays, they can win the match for us, so it is all about trusting our players,” Rahane said.

He also didn’t give any definitive answer on what would be senior spinner Ravichandran Ashwin’s role although he did acknowledge that his all-round skills will be very handy going into the first Test. “Ashwin’s role will be very important. We all know that he is an experienced bowler, he has got variety in his bowling, so his role as a bowler and also as a batsman will be really important,” he said.