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Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli were seen training hard in the nets ahead of the Boxing Day Test against at the MCG.
IND vs AUS: Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli in the nets (X/ screengrab)
India’s star batters Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli were seen sweating it out at the nets on Saturday in preparation for the Boxing Day Test against Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
According to visuals and reports from training, Rohit and Kohli were spotted leaving deliveries that were anywhere near the off-side or the fourth-stump line.
The duo were facing throwdown specialists in the nets, having arrived nearly half an hour before everyone else.
Rohit batted for around 90 minutes, his longest session since arriving in Australia, and looked far more comfortable at the crease and controlled his bat flow even appearing a bit more open-chested in his stance.
After facing throwdowns, Rohit moved on to face bowling from Harshit Rana and Prasidh Krishna, as well as the spin duo of Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar. The Indian skipper was seen speaking to Indian assistant coach Abhishek Nayar after what looked like training against a semi-new ball – a hint that Rohit might continue batting down the order.
Kohli, on the other hand, batted for around 40 minutes and was also seen leaving the ball outside the off stump.
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The Indian skipper has not had the best outing so far in the five-match series for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Rohit did not play the series opener in Perth due to the birth of his second child and since his return has managed scores of 3, 6 and 10 across the last two matches. Batting in the middle-order after six years to accommodate KL Rahul at the top has made the task even more challenging.
ALSO READ | Rohit Sharma Accepts He Has ‘Not Batted Well’, Adds ‘Feeling Good About Myself’
“I have not batted well. There’s no harm in accepting that. But I know what’s in my mind, how I’m preparing myself. All those boxes are very much ticked. It’s just about spending as much time as possible, which I’m pretty sure I’m just there,” Rohit said at the post-match press conference after the drawn Test at the Gabba.
“As long as my mind, my body, my feet are moving well, I’m pretty happy with how things are panning out for me. Sometimes those numbers can tell you that it’s been a while since he’s got big runs.
“But for a person like me, it’s all about how I feel in my mind, what kind of prep I’m having before each game, and how I’m feeling about myself. That’s the most important thing. And I’m feeling good about myself, to be honest. Runs are obviously not showing that, but inside it’s a different feeling,” he added.
