“Certainly, we could have done better. We probably had three dismissals that we could have avoided,” Labuschagne, who top-scored with 48 runs, said. 

“The Indians were bowling straight and we are not getting many runs on the off-side. Bowlers come up with new ideas to stop scoring, build pressure as they did,” he added. “I faced 130 balls or something like that. That is the challenge we face as a batting group and we love it.” 

The 26-year-old right-handed batsman said that his side would learn from its first innings performance and try to score big in the second. “It is not necessary that six batsmen get runs every innings, sometimes it is one or two. It is a big job for the batting unit. We will have to ensure big scores.” 

Asked about the Australians’ battle with Ashwin, Labuschagne said, “People are coming up with new ways like leg-side field. We are understanding and learning what he is doing. That is the key. We always do that as a batting group.” He said that the MCG pitch is helping the bowlers a little bit more than usual. 

“During the game, we certainly had a chat. Teams have very good bowling line-ups and there is a little bit more in it the pitch.”