3 Player Battles to Watch out for in the Fourth IND vs AUS Test at the MCG

IND vs AUS: After a hard-fought draw in the third test at the Gabba in Brisbane, India are gearing up for the Boxing Day Test against Australia. The fourth test is slated to be held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, which will begin on December 26.

Indian batting is under question once again as they prepare for the upcoming game. Ravichandran Ashwin has also retired after the last game. But India's biggest issue is Travis Head, who has won back-to-back Man of the Matches in the last two games. India will have to make some plans, and also the batters need to take more responsibility.

There are some key battles expected in the Boxing Day Test between the players of both sides. The BGT trophy and WTC final qualification are on the line, and both teams will not leave an inch for the opposition. In this article, we will talk about three premier player battles to watch out for in the IND vs AUS fourth test.

Three Top Player Battlers to watch out for in Fourth IND vs AUS test at MCG

1. KL Rahul & Yashasvi Jaiswal vs Mitchell Starc

The Indian opening pair hasn't been able to give India good starts, and that is largely because of the way Mitchell Starc has been bowling. Rahul is in good form and is the leading scorer for the visitors, and India need runs from Jaiswal as well.

But they have to go past Starc. The left-arm pacer has taken 14 wickets in the series and has dismissed Jaiswal four times and Rahul three times in this series. So, this will be interesting to see how these two will face Starc in the coming game.

2. Travis Head vs Jasprit Bumrah

The battle between the two best players of two sides is always exciting, and that's what we are witnessing in this series. Travis Head up against Jasprit Bumrah. Certainly, these two are at the peak of their cricket and are not letting the opposition get away easily.

That's what makes this battle so interesting. Bumrah has had the better of Head on a couple of occasions in the series, but Head has also scored 83 runs off 91 balls at a strike rate of 91.2 off Bumrah, which is pretty phenomenal. The result of the fourth test will rely on how these two go about the business.

3. Rohit Sharma & Virat Kohli vs Pat Cummins

Though this battle looks like a pretty mismatched one, as two batters are struggling with their form while the bowler is at the top of his game. We are talking about two stalwarts of the Indian cricket team, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, while the Australian captain, Pat Cummins, is also present.

The Indian experienced duo and the Australian captain have come up against each other many times in the past. Cummins has a superb record against these two, and he will look to put them under more pressure. Cummins has dismissed Rohit six times and Virat five times in test cricket. The Indian duo need to have some strong plans against him.

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