In the absence of Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane has proven to be the key in holding the middle order together. The Indian cricket team skipper was the main factor in Melbourne as his century and partnerships with the lower middle order helped India get the better of Australia in the Boxing Day Test. In Sydney on day 3, Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara held the key for India as they looked to get back on track following the late wickets of Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill on day 2. Both Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara focused on stonewalling the innings and did not score that quickly, with Cheteshwar Pujara scoring a run after 33 balls. On day 3, the mode of operation was similar from both batsmen but Ajinkya Rahane was involved in a couple of action-packed overs.
In the fourth ball of the 54th over bowled by Nathan Lyon, Ajinkya Rahane looked to defend but he managed to get an inside edge onto the pad which lobbed to short leg. Matthew Wade dived back and got his…