Rohit Juglan in Perth
Team India hit the ground running just hours after landing in Perth for their first practice session ahead of the ODI series against Australia, which begins here on Sunday.
The Indian team arrived in two batches on Wednesday and Thursday for the white-ball tour, which includes three ODIs and five T20s starting on 19 October. Once the full squad was assembled, the Men in Blue wasted no time getting down to work.
Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma hogged the spotlight in what was an optional practice session for Team India. Having not played competitive cricket recently, both batting stalwarts spent around 40-45 minutes in the nets. The pair were seen wielding their respective willows in adjacent nets.
For the first 20 minutes, Kohli faced the team’s throwdown specialists, while Rohit took on Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, and a few local bowlers. In the following 20 minutes, they switched roles — Kohli batted against Harshit and Arshdeep, while Rohit faced the throwdown specialists. Amidst the flurry of strokes, there were moments of both precision and struggle, as neither Kohli nor Rohit looked entirely in control during the session. Kohli was seen conversing with Harshit and bowling coach Morne Morkel. Rohit was also engaged in a discussion with head coach Gautam Gambhir after his stint at the nets, which lasted around 30 minutes.
KL Rahul was the only member of the Test squad that recently won the home series against the West Indies to turn up for practice. India’s first-choice wicketkeeper-batter in ODIs, Rahul, also faced throwdowns for just five minutes before speaking with Gambhir. After the brief chat with the coach Rahul did not return for further batting practice.
After bowling in the nets, Harshit and Arshdeep spent more than half an hour batting.
Team India will once again turn up for training tomorrow afternoon at Optus Stadium.
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