Ashwin's Kohli Concern: Why His Adelaide Dismissal Raises Alarm Bells

Virat's return to the international circuit hasn't panned out on a fairytale note as many fans would have hoped for. In a rain-curtailed series opener at the Optus Stadium in Perth, Virat perished against Mitchell Starc's seaming delivery. He fell for an eight-ball duck, with Cooper Connolly completing an acrobatic catch.

In Adelaide, a venue where the 36-year-old has revelled in a purple patch, runs continued to elude his bat. He appeared poised after his first three deliveries, but was outfoxed by Xavier Bartlett's nipping in delivery and got trapped in front of the stumps. As he departed with a four-ball duck, Virat took off his gloves and made a goodbye gesture towards the Adelaide spectators as the crowd stood on its feet and applauded.

For Ashwin, the most concerning sign about the pattern of Virat's dismissal was his inability to read the line of the ball. The 36-year-old's brief stay at the crease is a clear indicator to Ashwin that Virat needs to spend more time there.

"One thing I would be worried about is Virat actually missed the line of the ball. Virat planted his foot in line with the ball. That is telling me a story that he needs time in the middle. In Sydney, there is no reason why Virat should not make runs. But I think he would be thinking very deeply about how he got out in the last two games. It is not going to be easy, but I hope Virat gets out of it," Ashwin said on his YouTube channel.

While Virat floundered, Rohit flourished while riding high on his luck. After escaping a couple of close calls, Rohit flaunted his six-hitting muscle by hammering Mitchell Owen for back-to-back towering maximums and returned with 73 off 97 deliveries.

His 118-run partnership with Shreyas Iyer (61) and a late surge from Harshit Rana (24*) propelled India to 264/9. However, the total proved insufficient as Australia gunned down the 265-run target with 22 balls to spare and notched a two-wicket win.

- ANI