India vs Australia, Boxing Day Test: There is a lot of onus on Ajinkya Rahane, says Gautam Gambhir

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New Delhi, December 24: Team India would be looking to bounce back in the upcoming second Test match against Australia, starting Saturday (December 26) at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG).

The Indian team will be missing their regular skipper and batting mainstay, Virat Kohli, in the Boxing Day Test after the latter left for home on paternity leave. Kohli will be with his wife Anushka Sharma to welcome their first child and miss the remaining three Test matches in the Border Gavaskar Trophy in which Team India trail 0-1.

In Kohli's absence, middle-order batsman Ajinkya Rahane will be leading the Indian side and it will be interesting to see what will be the team's Playing XI after suffering a humiliating defeat in the opening game in Adelaide. Although, Rahane has led the Indian side in a couple of Test matches, one against Australia, in the past and enjoys a 100 per cent win record in the longer format as a skipper, playing in Australia in the latter's backyard isn't going to be an easy task.

Rahane faces a stiff challenge of lifting up the morale of his teammates following the horror show in the Pink-ball Test in Adelaide and also leading the team from the front. According to former India cricketer Gautam Gambhir, the onus lies on Rahane as to how the Mumbaikar is going to shepherd his side at a time when the experts have started counting Team India off and predicting a 4-0 series defeat.

Speaking exclusively on Star Sports show Cricket Connected, the former India opener shared his thoughts on India's loss against Australia in Adelaide and highlighted how the onus will be on Ajinkya now, "They need to remember that they actually dominated the first two days, they were ahead in the game throughout the first two days. They will be hurt about the one session - but again they need to remember that there are three test matches and at the same time they won't have their best player Virat Kohli with them; their captain. So, there is a lot of onus on Ajinkya Rahane, plus Mohammad Shami will not be there. There will be a lot of onus on what combination they go with."