Rohit Sharma's No.4 experiment falls flat as India captain struggles in pink ball warm-up game before 2nd AUS Test

India captain Rohit Sharma's decision to bat at No. 4 in the team's pink ball warm-up game against Prime Ministers XI at the Manuka Oval in Canberra did not go as planned, as the 37-year-old was dismissed early in his first match since arriving in Australia earlier this week.

Rohit demoted himself down the batting order to allow KL Rahul and Yashasvi Jaiswal to open in the practice match. The duo had stitched a record opening stand of 201 runs in India's 295-run win against Australia in Perth on Monday, with Jaiswal carving out a majestic 150, while Rahul scored a valiant 77. Hence, Rohit decided not to disturb the opening pair, thus hinting at India's likely combination for the second Test against Australia in Adelaide, and the duo picked up from where they left off in Perth, scoring a 75-run stand.

.teamshift img { width: auto; } .shareBox { img { width: auto; } } .playerShiftBlock { display: flex; flex-direction: column; padding: 20px 0 10px; border-radius: 16px; background: #2d3291; } .titleSecholder { display: flex; margin: 0 16px 7px; justify-content: space-between; align-items: stretch; } .titleblock { display: flex; padding-left: 12px; border-left: 3px solid #00b1cd; color: #fff; font-size: 20px; font-weight: 700; line-height: 20px; } .playerBlockSec { height: 340px; display: flex; align-items: center; flex-wrap: nowrap; width: 100%; overflow-x: auto; white-space: nowrap; position: relative; gap: 8px; } .playerBlockSec::-webkit-scrollbar { display: none; } .playerBlock { width: 156px; display: flex; padding-top: 42px; } .playerBlock .bgBlock { border-radius: 8px; display: flex; height: 280px; flex-direction: column; } .playerBlock .bgBlock.rcb { background: linear-gradient(154deg, #e73b4a -47.71%, #5e6aee 113.65%); } .playerBlock .bgBlock.lsg { background: linear-gradient(95deg, #5b6f9e -3.28%, #2b4366 58.29%); } .playerBlock .bgBlock.dc { background: linear-gradient(137deg, #4873ff -42.82%, #ff6f68 92.94%); } .playerBlock .bgBlock.gt { background: linear-gradient(133deg, #033f7a -14.77%, #ffe30f 109.41%); } .playerBlock .bgBlock.csk { background: linear-gradient(118deg, #fee719 -32.08%, #f29834 51.52%); } .playerBlock .bgBlock.mi { background: linear-gradient(324deg, #0279e5 32.22%, #fbfacb 104.85%); } .playerBlock .bgBlock.kkr { background: linear-gradient(308deg, #3a1865 20.3%, #e284f0 116.46%); } .playerBlock .bgBlock.pbks { background: linear-gradient(292deg, #fb5e5a 22.87%, #fef2cb 148.39%); } .playerBlock .bgBlock.srh { background: linear-gradient(302deg, #ff3431 12.37%, #f26522 88.8%); } .playerBlock .bgBlock.rr { background: linear-gradient(289deg, #31336e 18.46%, #fb4f8c 128.5%); } .playerBlock:first-child { margin-left: 16px; } .playerBlock:last-child { margin-right: 16px; } .playerBlock .imgSec { margin: -42px 13px 0; width: 130px; height: 162px; } .playerBlock .imgSec img { width: 130px; height: 162px; border-radius: 18px; } .namePrice { display: flex; justify-content: center; align-items: center; margin-top: -32px; flex-direction: column; } .namePrice .name { color: #fff; font-family: Lato; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 700; } .namePrice .price { color: #fff; font-family: Lato; font-size: 20px; font-weight: 900; } .teamshift { display: flex; justify-content: center; align-items: center; margin: 8px 0; gap: 8px; } .teamshift span { text-transform: uppercase; border-radius: 4px; background: rgba(39, 38, 33, 0.5); padding: 2px 6px; color: #fff; font-family: Lato; font-size: 12px; font-weight: 700; } ul.playerStats { list-style-type: none; display: flex; width: 100%; gap: 0 10px; flex-wrap: wrap; padding: 0 0 0 8px; } ul.playerStats li { width: 53%; color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.6); font-family: Lato; font-size: 12px; font-weight: 400; line-height: 150%; } ul.playerStats li:nth-child(even) { font-weight: 900; font-size: 14px; width: 40%; color: #fff; } /* share block css */ .shareBlock { display: flex; width: 20px; height: 20px; cursor: pointer; position: relative; } .shareBox { position: absolute; right: 0; top: 27px; border-radius: 4px; background: #fff; box-shadow: 0px 0px 6px 0px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.16); display: flex; padding: 6px 9px; align-items: center; gap: 24px; z-index: 3; width: fit-content; height: 50px; display: none; } .shareBlock:hover .shareBox { display: flex; } .iplCopyLink, .shareVia { color: #999; text-align: center; font-family: Lato; font-size: 14px; font-weight: 400; line-height: 150%; white-space: nowrap; position: relative; } .iplCopyLink::before { content: ' '; width: 1px; height: 40px; background-color: #d9d9d9; position: absolute; left: -12px; top: 5px; } .iplCopyLink img, .shareVia img { margin-top: 4px; } .socialIcons { display: flex; justify-content: center; align-items: center; } .shareVia .socialIcons a { margin-left: 12px; } .shareVia .socialIcons a:first-child { display: none; margin-left: 0; } @media (max-width: 767px) { .shareVia .socialIcons a:first-child { display: block; } } a.ctaFullCoverage { font-size: 16px; margin: auto; position: absolute; bottom: -22px; left: 0; right: 0; background: #00b1cd; width: 100%; max-width: 200px; color: white; padding: 12px 16px; font-weight: 700; text-align: center; border-radius: 22px; overflow: hidden; box-shadow: 0px 0px 16px 0px #00B1CD; text-decoration: none; } a.ctaFullCoverage span { position: relative; z-index: 2; margin-left: 24px; } a.ctaFullCoverage span::before { content: ''; position: absolute; left: auto; right: 0; top: 0; bottom: 0; margin: auto; border: 1px solid #FFF; width: 10px; height: 10px; border-width: 2px 2px 0 0; z-index: 2; transform: rotate(45deg); } a.ctaFullCoverage span::after { content: ''; position: absolute; left: auto; right: 0; top: 0; bottom: 0; margin: auto; height: 2px; width: 16px; background-color: #FFF; border-radius: 2px; } a.ctaFullCoverage::before { content: ''; position: absolute; top: -17px; left: 50px; width: 24px; height: 74px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.4); transform: rotate(32deg); animation: shinerMooving 3s infinite; z-index: 1; filter: blur(1px); } @keyframes shinerMooving { 0% { left: -40px; } 100% { left: 150%; } } Top 15 buys at IPL 2025 Auction Rishabh Pant ₹ 27 Cr DC LSG Total Match 111 Total Runs 3284 Highest Score 128 runs Shreyas Iyer ₹ 26.75 Cr KKR PBKS Total Match 115 Total Runs 3127 Highest Score 96 runs Venkatesh Iyer ₹ 23.75 Cr KKR KKR Total Match 50 Total Runs 1326 Highest Score 104 runs Wickets 3 Best Bowling 2/29 Arshdeep Singh ₹ 18 Cr PBKS PBKS Total Match 65 Total Runs 29 Highest Score 10 runs Wickets 76 Best Bowling 5/32 Yuzvendra Chahal ₹ 18 Cr RR PBKS Total Match 260 Total Runs 37 Highest Score 8 runs Wickets 205 Best Bowling 5/40 Jos Buttler ₹ 15.75 Cr RR GT Total Match 107 Total Runs 3582 Highest Score 124 runs KL Rahul ₹ 14 Cr LSG DC Total Match 132 Total Runs 4683 Highest Score 132 runs Trent Boult ₹ 12.50 Cr RR MI Total Match 104 Total Runs 83 Highest Score 17 runs Wickets 121 Best Bowling 4/18 Jofra Archer ₹ 12.50 Cr MI RR Total Match 35 Total Runs 195 Highest Score 27 runs Wickets 46 Best Bowling 3/15 Josh Hazlewood ₹ 12.50 Cr RCB RCB Total Match 12 Total Runs - Highest Score - Wickets 12 Best Bowling 3/24 Mohammed Siraj ₹ 12.25 Cr RCB GT Total Match 93 Total Runs 109 Highest Score 14 runs Wickets 93 Best Bowling 4/21 Mitchell Starc ₹ 11.75 Cr KKR DC Total Match 41 Total Runs 105 Highest Score 29 runs Wickets 51 Best Bowling 4/15 Phil Salt ₹ 11.50 Cr DC RCB Total Match 21 Total Runs 653 Highest Score 89 runs Ishan Kishan ₹ 11.25 Cr MI SRH Total Match 105 Total Runs 2644 Highest Score 99 runs Wickets - Best Bowling - Jitesh Sharma ₹ 11 Cr PBKS RCB Total Match 40 Total Runs 730 Highest Score 49 runs Check Full Coverage

Rohit walked in at No. 4 after Rahul retired hurt at 27 off 44. The India captain was attacked with a barrage of shot balls, but was eventually undone by the delivery down the corridor of uncertainty. In the 21st over the innings, he chased an outside off delivery from Charlie Anderson, as the ball took the outside edge and landed safely in the hands of the fielder at first slip.

Where will Rohit Sharma bat in pink ball Test?

The dismissal could spark concerns on Rohit's eventual batting position in the Adelaide Test. Rohit has not batted outside the opening position since the 2018/19 tour of Australia, when he batted at No. 6 in Melbourne and Adelaide, scoring 37, 1, 63* and 5 in the two matches.

However, if India do stick to their opening combination as it was in Perth, Rohit might have to bat at No. 5 or 6. Shubman Gill, who missed the opening Test owing to a thumb injury, returned to action in the warm-up game in Canberra, where he assumed his No. 3 role and with Virat Kohli slated to walk in next at No. 3 in Adelaide, Rohit might bat at No. 5, thus pushing Rishabh Pant one position down, or replace Dhruv Jurel at No. 6.

Rohit has batted just 16 times at No.5, scoring 437 runs with three fifties, and at No. 6, he has scored 1037 runs in 25 innings at 54.57 with three tons and six half-centuries.

Stay informed with the...