IND vs PAK 2022: Rohit Sharma desperate to negate Shaheen Afridi threat; Dinesh Karthik to don gloves ahead of Rishabh Pant

India skipper Rohit Sharma is extremely wary of Pakistan pace ace Shaheen Afridi, while Dinesh Karthik is all set to be picked ahead of fellow wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant. Team India had their first practice session in Melbourne today, ahead of the big clash against Pakistan on Sunday, October 23.

Rohit faced plenty of left-arm pace in the nets, and was circumspect throughout. Karthik, on the other hand, got some valuable hitting and wicketkeeping practice under his belt.

The optional practice session wasn’t adorned by stars, with just five possible first-choice players in attendance.

Karthik was the first to enter the nets, as left-arm orthodox Axar Patel and part-time off-spinner Deepak Hooda started rolling their arm over in what was their warm-up drill.

The Tamil Nadu-born cricketer was soon followed by Rohit, who took guard against left-armer Arshdeep Singh and comeback man Mohammed Shami, along with throwdown specialists and local net bowlers. Their task was to land their deliveries on the highlighted good-length areas. While Arshdeep took it away from his skipper, another Punjabi southpaw bowled at his body.

Rohit was okay with looking ugly but did not throw it away. Balls beat his outside edge as they thudded into his left pad, but the 35-year-old not for once tried to hit his way out of trouble.

Arshdeep sent down the odd yorker too, with one of them even evoking a clap from head coach Rahul Dravid. It looked like a simulation of what the powerplay could look like on October 23. Dravid closely monitored proceedings, while bowling coach Paras Mhambrey called the shots.

In the adjacent net, Karthik, with whom Rohit was constantly having banter, took on the spinners. The fuller length was marked out for him. Axar and Hooda were his prime targets, while a local leg-spinner prepared him for Pakistan’s Shadab Khan. Off the back foot and down on one knee, the 37-year-old kept peppering the imaginary cow corner and deep square leg.

30 minutes after the metronomical act, there was a swap. Karthik switched nets to face the speedsters, while Rohit moved one net to his left to take throwdowns. Even there, he was watchful against the left-armer.

Runs have eluded the Indian captain for quite some time now and Rohit meant business today. Soon after his hit, he was out having a long chat with Dravid while assessing his teammates. He was still padded up, though. Why? Because, he was to soon go back in for a second stint. This time, he just took throwdowns and deployed the long handle. However, he was extremely cautious against the left-arm bowlers.

In the other nets, it was time for Axar Patel to stand up for the injured Ravindra Jadeja. After facing spinners, the 28-year-old underwent special drills to take on short-pitched balls. A support staff member, using a racquet, directed tennis balls at Axar’s throat, which he had to play along the carpet.

Stand-by bowlers Mohammed Siraj and Shardul Thakur also joined the sparsely-populated practice arena. The duo bowled to Hooda, who earlier warmed up against the local spinners. Thakur, who can deputize for Hardik Pandya if need be, also sharpened his batting skills by bringing out his mighty heaves. There were plays and misses but, whenever he connected, it seemed to rocket off his willow.

Dinesh Karthik, who was also part of the Rohit-Dravid conference, took some wicketkeeping practice, before being the last man out of the nets to wrap up the two-hour session.

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Full list of India matches at T20 World Cup 2022

October 23: India vs Pakistan - Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne - 1.30 pm IST

October 27: India vs Netherlands - Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney - 12.30 pm IST

October 30: India vs South Africa - Perth Stadium, Perth - 4.30 pm IST

November 2: India vs Bangladesh - Adelaide Oval, Adelaide - 1.30 pm IST

November 6: India vs B1 - Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne - 1.30 pm IST