After Virat Kohli and Ravindra Jadeja were dismissed earlier in the day in the ongoing World Test Championship final, India’s prospects rested solely on Ajinkya Rahane, but he was unable to shine brightly enough. Mitchell Starc got the better of him in the 57th over of the second inning at The Oval, when the veteran cricketer was dismissed for 46 runs after a solid performance.
Notably, Rahane was not included in India’s plans leading up to the WTC final. As a result of Rishabh Pant and Shreyas Iyer’s respective injuries, the selectors gave Rahane another opportunity to distinguish himself, and he performed admirably in the first inning. When the majority of Indian batters struggled to get moving, the 35-year-old played brilliantly and scored 89 runs to give the Indians some hope.
Meanwhile, he and Virat Kohli appeared solid on the pitch towards the close of Day 4, and so there was optimism that the Rohit Sharma-led side could continue to chase 280 runs on the final day of the mega-match.
Intriguingly, the pair got off to a fast start in the morning session, but Kohli was once again dismissed by a cover drive to Scott Boland. The cricketer appeared to lack concentration as he left all deliveries outside off except for the one he chose to smash.
Notably, Nathan Lyon also bowled out Shardul Thakur shortly after Rahane’s dismissal, and he went back to the pavilion. Both Ajinkya Rahane and Shardul were India’s batting champions in the first inning, and with them out so early, the team is in a dire position.
On the other hand, wicketkeeper-batsman KS Bharat has shown great promise in the middle, but it will be difficult for him to win the match or even secure a draw. As the Australians are currently in complete control of the match, the tailenders will need to play exceptional cricket in order to win. This is highly unlikely, however, as the Australians are currently in complete command of the game.
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