Watch: India opener Rohit Sharma became the first Indian wicket to fall on day five of the Brisbane Test, edging one off Pat Cummins for wicketkeeper Tim Paine to take a diving catch.
Rohit, the cynosure of all eyes since his belated entry into India team for the final two Tests against Australia, was expected to play a pivotal role in their chase of 328 on the final day, but could only manage to add three runs to his overnight score of 4.
Opening alongside Shubman Gill, Rohit had moved to 7 off 20 balls, when a beautiful delivery from Pat Cummins, carrying just a hint of away movement, forced him into poke outside the off stump. The ball took a healthy edge off the bat and flew to the right of wicketkeeper Tim Paine, who completed the dismissal with a diving two-handed grab right in front of first slip.
After scores of 21, 26, 52 and 44, Rohit’s 7 in the second Brisbane innings took his series average to 32, a touch higher than his overall away average of 27.00.
It proved to be a classic Cummins dismissal, putting the ball in the nagging channel outside off and forcing the batsman to play at it, using slight deviation to produce an edge off the bat. With the wicket, Cummins, the No.1 Test bowler in the world, took his series wickets tally to 18, the most by any bowler from either team.
Watch his dismissal:
One down, nine to go! Pat Cummins strikes first with the wicket of Rohit Sharma! #OhWhatAFeeling@Toyota_AUs | #AUSvIND pic.twitter.com/JYDkzCYM8F
— cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) January 19, 2021
Beautiful bowling from Pat Cummins. Australia's grouping to Rohit Sharma has been immaculate today, and the wicket ball was just a touch fuller than most balls, and a touch wider, seaming away 0.6 degrees. A classic Cummins wicket. #AUSvIND pic.twitter.com/YSzg0UZuNg
— The CricViz Analyst (@cricvizanalyst) January 19, 2021