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If there was a little bit of fight at the top, this game was India’s: Ganguly
India's heartbreaking loss at Lord's, collapsing to 84/7 while chasing 196, leaves fans disappointed as batters fail to support a strong bowling effort.
Mumbai: Having gone toe-to-toe for most of the game, the manner of India’s defeat in the third Test in Lord’s is really heartbreaking. Heading into the fourth innings chase, the momentum was with the Shubman Gill’s young side. The bowlers had come with an awe-inspiring display with the spinners superbly backing the early inroads made by the pace battery.
In the end the bowlers again put up such a valiant fight with the bat but the Indian supporters were left to rue what could have been if the specialist batters had also shown similar resolve.
Brilliant until the second innings at Lord’s, the top order floundered at a crucial stage to miss a golden chance to put India 2-1 up in this riveting Anderson-Tendulkar series.
With just 196 to get, the visitors collapsed to 84/7 and India lost the game by 22 runs.
Former India captain Sourav Ganguly pointed out that a little bit of fight from the top-order would have clinched the game. Unfortunately, except for a 39 by KL Rahul, the other specialist batters crumbled in the pressure situation. Karun Nair got 14 while Shubman Gill, Yashavi Jaiswal and Rishabh Pant failed to get into double figures.
“A little bit disappointed (by the defeat) because the way India batted so far in this series so far they should have got 190. The batting quality in this team is absolutely brilliant and they will be more disappointed than I am because there was an opportunity to go 2-1 up in the series against England with two more Test matches to go. I am sure they have left Lord’s disappointed not getting 190, especially with the quality of batters in the dressing room,” said Ganguly who was in Mumbai on Tuesday to attend an Indian Racing League event as the owner of the Kolkata Royal Tigers franchise.
“We just needed two partnerships to win and (Jasprit) Bumrah, (Ravindra) Jadeja and (Mohammed) Siraj’s partnerships showed that if there was a little bit of fight at the top, this game was India’s,” said Ganguly.
Having led the team to 21 wins in 49 Tests, Ganguly is one of India’s most successful captains. He has been in the thick of the battle many times, with a memorable 1-1 drawn series in England in 2002. The 113-Test veteran was in Birmingham during the second Test and got to see the young captain Gill go about his job, scoring a double and a hundred while leading India to win. But, Lord’s tested Gill’s leadership especially during the eyeball-to-eyeball confrontation with the England openers.
“He will handle it (when the heat is on) in his own way, he will learn. He is a young captain, he is only three Tests old. He has done phenomenally as a batsman. This is the best I have seen him bat away from home. First hundred in Headingley and then back to back hundreds at Birmingham so as a batsman he has improved immensely in Test matches away from home. White ball he was always a very good player. In captaincy he will learn, no one comes as a complete captain, he did well in Birmingham so he will get better, you have got to give him time. He is a young captain,” said Ganguly.
Going into the fourth Test, the team management faces the dilemma of Bumrah’s selection considering his workload management. In the two Tests he has played in (first and third), Bumrah has picked five-wicket hauls in both.
“Whether he (Bumrah) plays the next Test match I can’t say from here because it depends on his body and how the team management wants to handle him. But obviously the next two Tests are very important for India, they are 2-1 down. But having said that they won in Birmingham without Bumrah, there are two sides to it. They have nine days, they have a lot of time, hopefully he will recover and get fit for the Test match,” said Ganguly.
Even though off-hand he couldn’t think of India making changes to the team for the next Test, Ganguly said captain Gill should find a way to play Kuldeep Yadav.
“I would have played him because at the end of the day you need 20 wickets to win Test matches,” he said.
Even while praising both Washington Sundar and Ravindra Jadeja’s heroic performances in the Lord’s Test, Ganguly reiterated his point on Kuldeep.
“I think they have to find a place for Kuldeep somewhere, how they do it they will have to see.”
