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Former Indian cricketer Sourav Ganguly feels that India let Australia get off the hook after the start they had in the ongoing Day 1 of the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) Final at The Oval, England. He said that the Rohit Sharma-led side will be disappointed with the way things went.
India won the toss and opted to bat first, it was a great start for them as they tested Australia batters with staggering new ball bowling. Based on some terrific bowling, the Rohit Sharma-led removed three wickets for just 76/3.
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Just when many thought India would keep the momentum on, things slipped away from them. They bowled some poor lengths and lines and allowed Steve Smith and Travis Head to free their arms and put them under tremendous pressure.
The duo forged unbeaten 251 runs for the 4th wicket partnership and made sure that Australia ended day 1 on dominating note. Travis Head remained unbeaten at 146 runs whereas Steve Smith was batting at 95. They took Australia from 76/3 to 327/3.
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Sourav Ganguly, who is part of the commentary panel, said that India will be disappointed with their effort. He highlighted that they had a great start to the post-lunch session but they lost the feel. He said:
“India will be a bit disappointed. They had Australia at 76/3 and let them get off the hook. I know that partnerships happen in cricket. There will be a batting team who will come back and play well. I thought India started well just after Lunch but lost the feel a bit as the game progressed.”
ICC World Test Championship Final: “Rohit Sharma with his field placements allowed some easy runs to happen,” says Sourav Ganguly
Sourav Ganguly further highlighted that skipper Rohit Sharma wasn’t spot on with his field played as it allowed Australia to score easy runs. He further explained:
“I thought they let Travis Head get off the hook very easily. I know he has been in good form, he has scored a lot of runs, but still they were 76/3. I think Rohit Sharma with his field placements at that stage probably allowed some easy runs to happen and now Australia are in a good position. This will be the best time to bat after Tea and Australia will be very happy going into the final session.”
If India didn’t take wickets on Day 2 early. It’s fair to say that the game is far beyond gone for them. Early wickets would be key for them as it will keep them in the game.
Virat Kohli | Rohit Sharma | Rishabh Pant | KL Rahul | Suryakumar Yadav | Sanju Samson | Shreyas Iyer | Yuzvendra Chahal | Jasprit Bumrah
