Rohit Sharma's Achilles' heel revealed with first-innings duck analysis: 'A topic of conversation since the beginning of his career'

On Day 1 of the ongoing second Test match between India and New Zealand in Pune, fans were treated to an action-packed day of cricket. Washington Sundar impressed with a seven-wicket haul, while Devon Conway scored a solid 76 and Ravindra Jadeja made a gritty 65.

Sundar's 7/59 saw New Zealand get bundled out for 259 in 79.1 overs. In the second innings, Indian fans were dealt a huge blow early, as captain Rohit Sharma departed in the third over.

In the final delivery of the third over, Tim Southee sent a good length delivery, which angled into the batter on the off stump. Rohit tried to defend it with a straight bat, but got squared up as the ball got past the outside edge, brushed his thigh pad, and hit the off stump. On his departure, India were stuttering at 1/1.

Speaking to ESPNCricinfo, former India cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar analysed Rohit's dismissal, and criticised the India captain's approach while defending.

"I liked the 50 that he got in the second innings of the last Test. He looked good, but clearly in the first innings, when there is a little bit in the pitch, that same loose defense, which we used to talk about at the start of his international career," he said.

"He would not take a step forward and he would react just with the bat, that is starting to happen, and when he had that fantastic series in England, he was doing the same thing, the front pad never goes down the pitch as much as Virat does, but he was able to leave balls outside the off stump. I think they have worked out a way to bowl to Rohit Sharma. If you see he was made to play that ball and in an attempt to play a ball that he had to play, that movement, he is always reacting with the bat. That happened in the first Test as well, where there was a DRS situation, where he was reacting to the movement with the bat, and the pad was not there.

"That makes him a little vulnerable when there is a little bit in the pitch and the ball is hard. So yes, the defense, more than anything, is a concern because temperamentally this guy is brilliant. He just maybe has to tighten up his defense a little more and things should be okay. I saw that happen in that second innings of the last Test," he added.

After Rohit's departure, Yashasvi Jaiswal (6*) and Shubman Gill (10*) took a cautious approach, taking India to 16/1 in 11 overs at Stumps. The hosts trail by 243 runs, with Jaiswal and Gill to resume batting on Day 2.

In the first Test, Rohit was dismissed for two runs off 16 balls in the first innings. Receiving a full length delivery from Southee, Rohit charged down to the pitch to negate the swing and send it over the bowler's head. But the ball sneaked through the gap between bat and pad to hit the stumps. Meanwhile in the second innings, he managed to bounce back with a half-century, registering 52 off 63 balls.