3 reasons why India struggled against Australia in the 2nd Test
After a resounding start by India in the first Test, Australia bounced back and rendered a heavy defeat in the second Test. Australia won the second Test by 146 runs as India failed to chase a target of 287 set by them.
While India scored 283 runs in reply to Australia's 326 in the first innings thanks to Captain Virat Kohli's knock, they suffered massively in the second. Considering how India's batting order is one of the best in the world, it was unacceptable and quite surprising that they gave away wickets so easily and succumbed to the pressure.
Moreover, the current Australian side is arguably one of their weakest Test sides ever. The massive victory will only give them much needed confidence and it is evident that they have bounced back from their initial defeat.
The management deserves criticism for their poor selection, too. It is an understatement to say the squad didn't click with poor choices. Let us evaluate the three reasons where it all went wrong for India.
#1 Failure of the opening pair :
The major failure of the Indian batting order is the failure of the opening pair. Both KL Rahul and Murali Vijay were out of sorts in the opening spell of both innings and failed to get their partnership going.
It is absolutely vital that the opening pair holds their end in high-pressure situations against the toughest of opponents. Both Rahul and Vijay failed to do that and instead put their successor in batting line-up under huge pressure.
An injury to Prithvi Shaw meant that Rahul got his chance at redemption but he failed to justify the optimism shown by coach and the management. Murali Vijay, being more defensive minded, added to the problems with his inconsistency. In both innings, Rahul couldn't manage over mere 2 runs while Vijay managed to score duck and 20 odd runs in both.
The failures of the top order and the constant backing of Rahul as an opener in Tests shows a massive lack of plan B from Ravi Shastri and management. If India wishes to turn things around, the opening pair in the batting order must step up.