3 positive takeaways for India from the loss at Perth

India slumped to a 146-run defeat in the second Test at Perth this morning, allowing Australia to claw their way back into the series. It means that the tie is evenly poised going into the next Test, which begins on December 26, the famed Boxing Day match.

There are several areas for India to focus on before it begins- with the openers' form being a major headache, while Rishabh Pant's wicketkeeping skills and lack of intent to hang around to help build the innings have left a lot to be desired. Team selection was also a major criterion for the defeat, with Umesh Yadav's inclusion in place of Ashwin the most glaring error.

However, not everything is completely negative about the Perth Test and here we take a look at some of the positives India can take away from the defeat.

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#3 The pacers have been brilliant

Bumrah has been the standout performer

India have not had a great history with pacers. Many talented ones have come into the side but not been able to deliver consistently (think of Irfan Pathan and RP Singh) with a few exceptions being Javagal Srinath and Zaheer Khan. Both played in different eras which meant that they had no supporting act at the other end to sustain the pressure.

This continued for a long time with Ishant Sharma also initially falling off the radar after that breezy spell against Ricky Ponting but the Delhi pacer is now part of arguably India's most lethal pace attack along with Bumrah and Shami. The trio seems to work very well with each other.

Bumrah and Shami have picked up 11 wickets each while Ishant has picked up eight. They are part of the top five wicket-takers in the series beaten only by Lyon, who has 16 wickets. They have hit the right areas consistently and have largely maintained good discipline in their lines and lengths.

The trio has had the Aussie batting line-up on tenterhooks and could have had more wickets if for some better catching from the fielders behind the stumps.

#2 Rahane seems to have regained his form

Rahane built important partnerships in both innings

Ajinkya Rahane was lent a big wake-up call at the start of the year when he was dropped from the XI in the first Test of the South Africa series, despite being vice-captain. He did make a comeback later on but he received a clear message from the team- perform or perish.

He did have a few good scores here and there but largely failed to justify his selection even in England. However, his intent changed at Perth. In the first innings, he came in at the fall of Pujara's long vigil and along with captain Kohli, ensured that they did not lose any more wickets on Day 2.

He fell early on Day 3 but had ensured that Kohli had an able partner and ruin the Aussies' momentum. In the second innings too, Rahane did not play many false shots even though he was counterattacking. He fell to an irresponsible shot but had once again stopped the opposition's momentum.

These two innings followed his 70 at Adelaide, which indicates that he may have finally found his rhythm. If only he can find that resolve to hang around like his initial days, India will have at least four batsmen they can depend on to build a big score.

#1 India have found their no. 6 in Hanuma Vihari

Vihari looked solid in both innings

Hanuma Vihari made his debut in the England series earlier this year and impressed immediately with a fifty, which came in the midst of an innings where the rest of the batsmen crumbled under pressure from Broad and Anderson.

He came as a replacement for the injured Rohit Sharma at Perth and played well, though his scores may not reflect it. Vihari scored 20 in the first innings, providing stability along with Kohli before he got a snorter of a delivery from Josh Hazlewood. In the second essay too, he looked largely composed, scoring 28 off 74 balls, with almost no false shots.

The 25-year-old also rolled his arm over, providing two crucial breakthroughs in the first innings, somewhat compensating for the lack of a spinner in the team. He has plenty of experience, scoring more than 5000 runs in the domestic circuit, and his performance may have just signalled the end of Rohit Sharma's Test career.