Rohit Sharma And...? 3 Villians Of India's Test Defeat Against Australia In Adelaide

Aashay Chopade

Rohit Sharma failed in both innings of Adelaide Test (Source:AP Photos)Rohit Sharma failed in both innings of Adelaide Test (Source:AP Photos)

Story continues below ADVERTISEMENT

India started off the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 with a bang, winning the opening Test in Perth by 295 runs. It was a historic win and India were expected to play well in the Pink-ball Test at the Adelaide Oval, but they faltered big time, losing the Test by a humiliating margin of 10 wickets.

There were many below-par performances from Indian players, both in the batting and bowling group, but some had a forgettable outings and it cost India big time. So, here are the three players who came up with the most disappointing performances in Adelaide Test.

Rohit Sharma

Rohit Sharma after Adelaide Test (Source:AP Photos)Rohit Sharma after Adelaide Test (Source:AP Photos)

The Hitman returned as captain after missing the first Test and made a bold decision to bat in the middle order. He had a good record at number six, but in this Test, he failed in both the innings, scoring three and six in the first and second outing respectively. He looked completely out of sorts in both the innings and him not showing resilience as an experienced batter when the team was under pressure proved very costly.

Also, his captaincy was quite defensive, especially when Travis Head was batting and he was guilty of spreading the field too quickly when the Southpaw came into the crease. It helped Head and his knock of 140 took the game away from India.

Virat Kohli

Virat Kohli in 2nd Test vs Australia (Source:AP Photos)Virat Kohli in 2nd Test vs Australia (Source:AP Photos)

The Adelaide Oval is Virat Kohli's favourite ground in Australia and he has three centuries at the ground. So, there were high expectations from the legendary batter and with many inexperienced players in the batting line-up, the onus was on him to show some fight in the middle. However, he could muster only 20 runs in two innings which gave Australia a lot of confidence and as a result, India could not cross 200-run mark in both the innings.

Kohli was also coming into this Test on the back of a century, but the technical flaws were evident against a moving ball. The struggle of an experienced and successful batter hurt his younger teammates confidence, and India would be hoping for a better performance from their star cricketer.

Harshit Rana

Harshit Rana with Siraj (Source:AP Photos)Harshit Rana with Siraj (Source:AP Photos)

Harshit Rana made his debut in Perth Test and had a decent outing. He did well in the pink-ball practice match with four wickets, and there were expectations that he would contribute both with the ball and bat in the second Test. Harshit Rana bagged a king pair with the bat in hand, and with the ball too, he went wicketless in 16 overs he bowled.

There was enough help in the pitch both off the deck and in the air, but Harshit Rana's poor performance as third seamer hurt India badly and Australia ended up posting a big total. Also, he was the most expensive of the lot, and leaked runs at an economy rate of 5.4.