Mastering art of leaving in practice

A cold, breezy Saturday welcomed India cricket team to Melbourne. The conditions did not deter Rohit Sharma and Co to sweat it out during the intense training session in the first half of the day here. Having arrived in the city after the draw in Brisbane, India had a rest day before turning up at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.

- GOMESH S

ET sessions sometimes work as a giant book of revelation. The sessions can reveal what's been discussed inside the dressing room. What is on a batter's mind; or what line a bowler would be looking at or what length he would prefer. On Saturday in Melbourne, India batters were trying to plug a hole that led to their demise more often than not. They were focused on leaving the ball alone outside off stump.

In what was a full strength session, the focus was largely on leaving the ball as much as possible while trying to cover the off stump, especially for the top order batters. From Virat Kohli to Rohit Sharma to Shubman Gill, India's main batters have been struggling for form and the team needs them to perform.