Team India made an unusual demand ahead of day two of the pink ball Test against Australia. They refused the ground staff to touch the wicket. This means that the pitch was not rolled or swept in the morning. India entered day two with 233 runs on board at the loss of six
According to reports in Foxsports.com.au, the visitors gave clear directions to the bottom worker to be This is rather unusual since the teams are given an option of using heavy or light rollers before the start of play. According to ICC rules, teams are only allowed for such a request just 10 minutes before the resumption of play. This also means that the presence of gravel on the ground could help the Aussie spinners since the ball might just grip more and turn a lot.
India puts 244 runs on board in the first innings:
Meanwhile, India was all out for 244 runs after the tailenders ended added 11 runs more on day two. Earlier, on day one, Ajinkya Rahane and Virat Kohli were setting a daunting partnership but the bizarre mix-up between the two gave a run-out opportunity to Australia. As a result, Kohli’s wicket was gifted to the host. He was out after scoring 74 runs off 180 balls.
After a few overs, Rahane also lost his wicket off Mitchell Starc’s bowl. Hanuma Vihari also fell off Hazelwood’s bowl while Wriddhiman Saha could not do much with not much support from the other end.
In an ongoing Australia’s first innings, the openers Joe Burns and Matthew Wade have lost their wickets in the first session while Marnus Labuschange has been given two alive chances as Jasprit Bumrah and Prithvi Shaw dropped easy catches.