KL Rahul walks despite no nick, returns after no-ball called; makes Virat Kohli go back, survives again as AUS appalled
KL Rahul had a lucky break but it didn't last long as Australia took the honours in the first session of the Adelaide Test.
In an unbelievable five-minute period of play, KL Rahul got out, walked off, was made to come back to bat again and survived a dropped catch… all of it in the same over during Day 1 of the India vs Australia 2nd Test in Adelaide. Rahul, on 0 off 18 balls, edged Scott Boland's first delivery of the match to wicketkeeper Alex Carey, but Australia's joy was short-lived. Just as Rahul seemed to be on his way back, umpire Richard Illingworth's right hand went up, indicating a no-ball.
Rahul didn't even wait for the umpire to decide and walked immediately. This was strange, to say the least, as no movement was indicated on the ultra-edge during the replay. Of course, with the technology not being fool-proof, there is always room for error. But Rahul walking off without even the slightest of nicks offers a whole new twist.
In between the series of events, Virat Kohli was left wondering what to do. Seeing Rahul starting to walk, Kohli, India's No. 4, got ready to enter the ground, but just as he was about to cross the boundary ropes and enter the field, Kohli realised that it wasn't his turn to bat – not just yet – and re-entered the change room. However, that wasn't all. Five balls later, in the same over, Rahul survived again, with Usman Khawaja putting down a catch at third slip.
Watch the no-ball below:
India claw back but lost plot again
The wicket could have had India at 31/2. Still, making the most of the missed opportunities, Rahul and Shubman Gill took their partnership and India's score to over 50 after Yashasvi Jaiswal perished for a first-ball duck. Jaiswal, coming off a solid century in the 2nd innings of his first Test, was trapped right in front of the stumps by none other than Mitchell Starc, the man he sledged during the first Test.
Starc, for the third time in his career, picked up a wicket in the first ball of the match as Jaiswal missed putting bat to ball. Jaiswal, playing his first pink-ball Test, spoke about taking the review with Rahul, but after the senior pro turned down his request, the 22-year-old had no option but to return without troubling the scorers.
After playing out three maiden overs against Pat Cummins, Rahul accelerated brilliantly to reach 37 off 64 balls at one stage, while his partner Gill scored at a healthy rate himself. The two Indian batters combined to hit 11 boundaries between themselves, with Gill beginning India's attacking approach with a flurry of boundaries. Rahul looked set for another big score, but much to his and India's disappointment, he got out with half an hour before lunch, edging Starc to Marnus Labuschagne in slips.
At 77/2, India were still the team on top 10 minutes before the end of the first session, but Starc landed a third blow - in the form of Kohli capping off a session that belonged to Australia. Things then went from bad to worse, with Boland getting Gill out LBW as India crashed from 69/1 to 82/4 at lunch.
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