Australian Test skipper Tim Paine feels the hosts cannot take their foot off the pedal against India going into the Boxing Day Test on Saturday.
Team India who had suffered a humiliating defeat at the Adelaide Oval last week will be without the services of skipper Virat Kohli who has returned to India on paternity leave.
At the same time, the Australian Test stumper also added that the visitors have plenty of dangerous players who can chip in when required and therefore, his side must be prepared for another five-day battle.
“We know that some of the players they’re talking about coming into their side, like a KL Rahul or Rishabh Pant, are dangerous players who like to take the game on and will play positively. If we give players like that an inch they will take a mile, so we need to be bang on the mark tomorrow as we were in Adelaide and be prepared to turn up for another five-day battle”, Paine said.
Apart from Kohli’s absence, the Indian team will also have to deal with frontline pacer Mohammed Shami’s exclusion from the squad. Shami’s tour of Australia was cut short after he ended up fracturing his bowling wrist. The speedster was struck on his right wrist by an awkward delivery from his Aussie counterpart Pat Cummins as a result of which the tail-ender was in no position to bat and had to walk off the field. The 30-year-old did not even come out to bowl in the fourth innings where Kohli & Co. were defending a paltry total of 89.
This is a must-win encounter for India as a loss here would mean that the Aussies end up taking an unassailable 2-0 lead in the four-match series. A win at the iconic MCG will help the hosts in securing the series irrespective of the outcome in the final two Tests in Sydney and Brisbane respectively.
