Aus vs Ind – Shubman Gill looks “happy” on his return to the nets in Canberra

India arrived in Canberra on Wednesday evening where a group of fans were waiting for them at the airport. They then turned to Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to say a little “How are you?” and under heavily overcast skies that ended with rain that lasted for most of the session, they concentrated to the challenge of playing against the pink ball. India will intensify its preparations for the second Test in Adelaide with a day-night game against the Prime Minister’s XI scheduled to begin on Saturday, but the weather forecast for that is quite poor. The first day of the two-day game could well be washed out.

Perhaps in anticipation of this, India’s batters were given nice, long training sessions to get used to the pink ball and all the mischief it is capable of. Yashasvi Jaiswal had barely figured out which shot to play when he was slapped on the pads and he hated it. As he stood there, cross-legged and hand on hip, he listened to Ravindra Jadeja’s glee. “The ball swung away, didn’t it?” There was a hint of surprise in those words, but also of the challenge that this team now faces. Day and night Test matches are sometimes dominated by bowlers, particularly in Australia.

“Whether it’s a pink ball or a red ball, the difference is really in the mind,” Nayar said. “Of course there is a little difference between the two – the color is different, there is more paint – and we are lucky that we have six to eight days to prepare. Even when we were in Perth, we were there.” Rohit (Sharma) has also started preparing. We will continue to focus on our game.

Rohit waited in the tunnels of Optus Stadium and greeted every Indian player as they returned in top form after that 295-run win last week. His return – after becoming a father to a second child – has taken the team even further. Rohit had already started playing against the pink ball in Perth and he backed it up in Adelaide too, although he looked a little rusty at times as he produced some of his trademark shots – including a leg pull which he carefully suppressed .

“When Rohit Sharma is around, there is a lot of laughing and joking,” said Nayar. “So the atmosphere and the environment are good. The atmosphere is definitely excellent. Rohit wasn’t there initially but he was very much with us.” (in spirit) So there wasn’t much difference.

With a chill in the air, a song from the speakers (Heat waves from Glass Animals) and a picture of Gandalf Lord of the rings While he was frozen on the big screen and all he could do was move his head back and forth with a satisfied smile (obviously he’s a fan of the band), this felt like a session where the Indian team was slowly reconnecting with the Trott familiarized himself with a few well-deserved days off.

Rishabh Pant spent virtually the entire time running around the outfield. KL Rahul repeatedly completed 100-yard sprints. Virat Kohli caught the attention of the fans who had come by to watch and what they saw was a perfectionist, screaming in frustration as his shots led to crosses, delighting in hitting the ball from the middle shortly after, and threw a thumbs up to Mukesh Kumar as he got the ball past his edge.

Jaiswal, perhaps putting in more work than most, changed priorities and tried fast bowling at the end of practice. After a two-step run-up from the edge of the pitch, he almost bowled Dhruv Jurel on the way, his hands flying to his head as the ball whistled just past the top of those bright yellow Flexi-Cricket stumps. However, he didn’t seem to enjoy it. “Being a fast bowler is hard work, yaar,” he said to much laughter and trotted off again to face more tosses.