India vs Australia: Virat Kohli leaves for India after pep talk with teammates

India vs Australia: Virat Kohli leaves for India after pep talk with teammates
Virat Kohli

India are reeling off the back of what was a humbling in the first Test against Australia at the Adelaide Oval. After a more than decent performance in their first innings, India were ahead at the end of Day 2 with a handy lead of 62 and a score of 9/1. But on the morning of Day 3, the Indians lived their worst nightmare as the Aussie bowlers bowled them out for a score of 36 – their lowest ever in Test cricket history.

India will look to take the few positives that came out of the first Test and look to bounce back in the second Test which is scheduled to begin on Boxing Day – the 26th of December at the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground. There are bound to be changes made in the playing XI after what was well and truly a horrific debacle in Adelaide.

Virat Kohli leaves Australian shores

Ajinkya Rahane
Ajinkya Rahane

India will be without their skipper Virat Kohli for the final three Test as had been already announced soon after the announcement of the squads in November. Kohli’s wife Anushka Sharma is pregnant at the moment and expecting the couple’s first child in January. The Indian captain has thus left for India on ‘paternity leave’. His deputy Ajinkya Rahane will lead the side in his absence.

Virat Kohli boarded his flight back home today and met with his teammates for one final time in Australia and gave a pep talk to encourage the outfit to produce a strong comeback in the series. Meanwhile, Kohli’s limited-overs deputy Rohit Sharma has arrived in Australia already and is quarantining to be ready to play from the third Test onwards.

Also Read: India vs Australia: “Let it go and move on” – Steve Smith’s advice to India after Adelaide debacle