Former Indian player Sunil Gavaskar has backed the tourists to bounce back in the second Test against Australia in Adelaide after a tough Day 1. Gavaskar feels wickets of Travis Head and Steve Smith on Day 2 would be important. However, Mitchell Starc claimed six wickets to bowl India out for 180 on the opening day after India opted to bat first. Later, Nathan McSweeney and Marnus Labuschagne dug in and weathered the storm to finish the day on 86/1 as well.

Speaking to India Today, Gavaskar added: “As we saw in Perth, even a score of 150 was good enough for the Indians to get a small lead of 46 runs. Clearly, this Indian team is capable of striking back. All that they need to do is bowl a better length than what they did in the evening. If they get four wickets, including that of Travis Head and Steve Smith in the first innings, then India can come back. They might not be able to get a big lead, but they will still be in the game.”

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However, Sunil Gavaskar said that the Indian bowlers haven’t quite made the impact Aussie players did in lengths.

He said in an interaction with Star Sports: “They have to make the batters play as much as they can. And this is what happens when you make the batters play as much as you can. You can set them up by bowling a couple of deliveries outside and then get the ball to move back in, as it did to Nathan McSweeney in the Perth Test, or to Labuschagne in the Perth Test, like what Bumrah did. The Indian bowlers have not really used the pink ball as well as they should have.”