Rahul, who had been moved down to No. 3 in the batting order after Rohit Sharma returned to open alongside Yashasvi Jaiswal, found himself on the receiving end of a taunt from the 37-year-old Aussie. As Rahul arrived at the crease and marked his guard, Lyon could be heard taunting Rahul about his demotion to no.3, saying, “What did you do wrong to bat one down?”
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Despite the comment, Rahul brushed off Lyon and continued to focus on his game. This incident follows a tense atmosphere in the Boxing Day Test, fueled by the altercation between Virat Kohli and debutant Sam Konstas on Day 1; as Kohli walked past Konstas, their shoulders bumped, leading to a heated exchange.
Kohli has since been booed by the Australian crowd at the MCG, and the cricketer’s response was fierce, as he encouraged the crowd to boo louder.
Meanwhile, India’s struggles at the crease continued, with captain Rohit Sharma failing to break his series slump. On the first ball of the sixth over, Pat Cummins delivered a short ball outside off stump, which Rohit attempted to pull but mistimed, sending the ball high into the air. Scott Boland easily took the catch at mid-wicket, as Rohit’s poor form continued.
Rahul was looking in excellent touch, however, but was dismissed right at the stroke of tea, thanks to a brilliant delivery from Cummins. The Aussie captain shaped the delivery away from the right-handed Rahul, beating the edge to castle his stumps. The Indian batter couldn’t help but admire the jaffa from Cummins, as India face a daunting task after Australia posted a mammoth 474 in the first innings.
Rohit’s dismissal marked his seventh in Test cricket at the hands of Cummins; as the match heads into the final session of Day 2, India will be hoping for a solid partnership between Virat Kohli and Yashasvi Jaiswal to steady the ship.
