Rampaging quick Jasprit Bumrah has no problems handing back the captaincy to Rohit Sharma despite leading India to their most commanding Test win on Australian soil.
India are in the box seat to win a fifth-straight Border-Gavaskar series after going 1-0 up with their 295-run massacre of Australia in Perth.
With Rohit remaining in India following the birth of his second child, Bumrah seamlessly stepped up to captain his country in the series-opener, opposing Pat Cummins in a rare battle of superstar fast bowling leaders.
The 30-year-old Bumrah was named player of the match after dismantling Australia with match figures 8-72
Rohit arrived in Australia on Sunday, stepping straight into the Optus Stadium nets on Monday ahead of the second Test at the Adelaide Oval, starting on December 6.
“He’s the captain of our side, and he’s done a phenomenal job,” Bumrah said of Rohit.
“I was filling in for him so I still had discussions when he was in India, discussing how we are shaping up.
“I’m going to help him in whatever capacity I can.”
Rohit will return as opener to partner whiz kid Yashasvi Jaiswal, who scored a stunning 161 in the second innings.
It means KL Rahul, who filled in for Rohit at the top of the order, will need to shuffle further down despite impressing in both innings in Perth, with 26 and 77.
No.3 Shubman Gill is still recovering from a finger injury and will be an automatic inclusion for Adelaide if he is fit.
If Gill plays instead of Devdutt Padikkal, then Rahul would slide down to No.6 in place of Dhruv Jurel.
India produced the most dramatic turnaround to crush Australia, this dominant performance coming just three weeks after New Zealand inflicted a historic 3-0 home whitewash.
The tourists arrived in Australia under intense pressure and scrutiny, but they silenced the doubters with some flawless cricket from after tea on the opening day until the end of day three.
“Almost as good as you would want,” Bumrah said.
“(Sunday) was perfect.
“We wanted to bowl in the evening. We wanted two wickets, but we got more than that. We couldn’t ask for anything more.”
Bumrah, however, denied that India had inflicted any psychological damage on Australia with the performance.
Content Source: www.perthnow.com.au