AUS vs IND: Memories of Gabba still fresh as India hits the nets ahead of third Test against Australia

Flecks of bright yellow, chocolate brown and mild blue were the colour tones of the spectator chairs in the stands, and out in the middle, it was a green expanse with the pitch too adding its bit with a lighter shade. The Gabba bathed in sunlight is a pretty sight and it was here in January 2021, that Rishabh Pant (89 n.o.) anchored a stunning chase as India defeated Australia and retained the Border-Gavaskar Trophy at 2-1.

Pant, Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Mohammed Siraj and Washington Sundar, part of the current squad, played that game together, while the then coach, Ravi Shastri, is back Down Under as a commentator and columnist. Obviously, there was hope in the air when Rohit’s men got into a huddle under deep blue skies here on Thursday morning.

Coach Gautam Gambhir spoke briefly and then an animated Virat Kohli held centre stage. Perhaps it was a call to arms, maybe a stress on the ‘we’, or an emphasis on brotherly solidarity as he tapped the players on either side and pointed to those standing diagonally opposite. Once Kohli’s extempore speech concluded, the players dived into their fielding drills.

There were throws at the stumps, Kohli was sharp here; catches for the slip-cordon; and the swirling hits to the deep as fielders looked up and waited for the ball to descend. And once K.L. Rahul dragged his kitbag to the nets arena, it was a clue for others to follow suit.

ALSO READ | A talent under development, Nitish Kumar Reddy hopes to keep India in a happy space with his all-round skills

Rahul, Gill, Kohli, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rohit, Pant and Washington, were all part of the initial set of batters, fine-tuning their craft. As Kohli buckled down with his bat, he saw Rohit waiting in the sidelines and then the two took turns to bat for a while. A lot would hinge on these two senior batters, especially with the third Test scheduled to commence here on Saturday.

Sourav Ganguly’s 144 here in 2003 was the classic skipper’s knock and it set the tone for India in that series. Ideally, Rohit too should reclaim his mojo and dish out a special innings. While the batters sweated, Jasprit Bumrah played the statesman, often chatting with his fellow pacers, cracking the odd wisecrack and when it was time, he landed thunderbolts and tested his batting colleagues.

As shots were played and leaves outside the off-stump finessed, a few edges and some awkward reactions were on view too. Maybe the bowlers were asked to be at full tilt and some of them were guilty of overstepping. No-balls in nets might flare up as a bad habit in Tests and in the current series, India has added 22 to the extras component. Level at 1-1, every vulnerability may get exacerbated over the next few weeks.

Meanwhile, chief selector Ajit Agarkar held a ball, rubbed some sweat on it, felt the seam and juggled a bit. Perhaps it was muscle memory at work for the former pacer. Hopefully, India too would glean some optimism from the past, specifically the 2021 outing.