And he did what he was always capable of doing: take on the toughest conditions and look more comfortable on the first day. He scored just 26, before being hit by an umpire’s error, but looked more comfortable than most batsmen despite facing the new ball. Later in the second innings, he compiled another prudent 77 to further stamp his authority.

The return of Rohit Sharma and the big question for India in Adelaide

However, with the return of Rohit Sharma, India might have to change their batting position. Shubman Gill also batted in the nets and will be back in the fold in the next game. That means India must drop No. 3-ranked Devdutt Padikkal to accommodate Gill.

Padikkal’s range seemed limited against pacers and he lacked run-scoring options. While he handles spin well, pacers will pose a big challenge with the pink ball. Therefore, he must make way for Gill in the next game.

Also Read: How Devdutt Padikkal overcame Ruturaj Gaikwad and Sai Sudharsan to make India’s team against Australia

The main question, however, is where they will place KL Rahul now. His comebacks in the previous game mean the team has to play him in the next game. But as his career has progressed, Rahul will once again find himself playing a new role as there is no place in the top three. That will leave only one spot: number 6, acquired by Dhruv Jurel in the last match.

Now Jurel hasn’t done anything wrong to be dropped. He faced some of the toughest conditions in both innings of the first Test and couldn’t do much. Still, he could face the ax and be out in the next game.

At number 6, Rahul has 234 runs at an average of 29.25 in nine Test innings. However, he has played two vital knocks in this position, one of which was a century for good against South Africa in Centurion. He also scored a quickfire 68 against Bangladesh in Kanpur at No. 6.

Rahul has worked on his game to become a middle-order batsman in the longer format. If he had to play in a full-strength XI, he would have batted in the middle order anyway. It was his new position and he was always competing with Sarfaraz Khan and Dhruv Jurel, not Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill.

If the team plays Rahul in the top three, Gill must change his batting position. Naturally, he is a top-order batsman and never batted outside the top three. Therefore, adapting to a newer position in such arduous conditions will be relatively more difficult, unlike Rahul who has previous experience playing in the middle and lower-middle order.

Gill is just finding his feet at number 3 and is slowly adapting to that role. This year, he has scored 806 runs at an average of 47.41, including three fifties and as many centuries, in 19 innings batting one down. So altering your set number means changing too many batting positions unnecessarily.

Also Read: The Making of Varun Chakravarthy 2.0: What’s Behind His Success?

There is no place in the top five and it is not wise to take too many hitters out of position. Instead, KL Rahul should simply take the No. 6 spot as he has previously played in multiple positions.