KL Rahul’s solidity aside, India’s top order has had a tough time in the ongoing Test series in Australia. Barring the 161 in the second innings in Perth, Rahul’s opening partner Yashasvi Jaiswal too has ordinary numbers.

At No.3, Shubman Gill also has looked far from comfortable while his shot selection too comes under question, especially the one he played in the first innings of the drawn Brisbane Test.

The series is locked 1-1 at present with rain and inclement weather playing a big role to help India draw the third Test at the Gabba. But for India to brighten their chances of winning the Border-Gavaskar Trophy again and confirm their place in the World Test Championship final, they certainly need both Jaiswal and Gill to be a little more disciplined at the crease and show better application in the upcoming Boxing Day Test and in the final encounter at the Sydney Cricket Ground.

“Top-order runs are very important when you play outside India, especially in Australia and South Africa. When the top order doesn’t score runs, the responsibility and pressure increases on the lower order,” agreed senior pro Ravindra Jadeja, during his interaction with the media in Melbourne after practiceon Saturday.

“Hopefully, the top order and the middle order will do well in this (fourth) Test. As a team, we need the top order to perform. If everyone contributes in the batting unit, the team will do well.”

From some quarters, it’s being said that India have the momentum, thanks to Akash Deep and Jasprit Bumrah’s last-wicket partnership of 47 that defied the Australian attack at a time the hosts looked set to enforce the follow-on. On the drop-in pitch at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, things could get quite interesting, and if India can minimise the errors and make use of the confidence gained from avoiding the follow-on at the Gabba, the pressure could well be back on Australia.

On their part, the Australians too are worried about their top-order batsmen’s struggles while their bowling attack isn’t getting younger either.

“It’s good that we are 1-1 after the three Tests. The next two games will be very interesting too,” all-rounder Jadeja said.

“If we win even one Test, we’ll retain the trophy because we won the last two series. It’s thus a good opportunity to give that one good effort.

“We’ll see what happens in the last match (in Sydney), but this is a very important and crucial game for us.”

Importantly, Jadeja himself too is in decent rhythm with the bat at least as his77 in Brisbane was almost as important as Rahul’s 84 in taking India closer to avoiding the follow-on. “I got a nice few days to understand and get used to the conditions.

“I was here so many days and used to bowl and bat on the tracks here. I got more familiar with the conditions here. All my hard work atnets helped me in the Test and I played as per my plans,” Jadeja pointed out.

‘On-field mentor’

About his long-time spin colleague Ravichandran Ashwin, Jadeja came to know of the premier off-spinner’s international retirement “at thelast moment.” “Almost five minutes before the press conference (last Wednesday),” Jadeja said.

For Jadeja, Ashwin was life his on-field mentor. “He played like my on-field mentor. We have been playing together for so many years as bowling partners. We kept passing messages to each other on the field regarding the game situation. I will miss all these things.”