Former Pakistan captain Rashid Latif has weighed in on India’s terrible batting collapse on the third day of the Day-Night Test against Australia in Adelaide, saying that disastrous collapse must have been a nightmare for captain Virat Kohli.
In the first pink-ball Test of the ongoing four-Test series, India scored a competitive 244 in the first innings and then bowled out Australia for 191, gaining a handy 53-run lead.
But then the things turned out completely shocking in the second innings, as the tourists registered their lowest Test total with Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins skittling them for 36 at Adelaide Oval.
Unfortunately, Team India set only 90 to win for Australia and the hosts chased it down with eight wickets to spare and took a 1-0 lead in the four-match Test series at home.
Well, Kohli played a sensible knock of 74 runs in the first innings but was dismissed for just 4 in the second and Latif believes that was the result of being forced to play an attacking shot with wickets falling all around him on day three in the first Test.
PTI quoted Latif saying: “Virat Kohli played a very sensible knock in the first innings but the second time around, with wickets falling so quickly at the other end, even he was tempted to chase a wide one to get runs on the board. It must have been a nightmare for Kohli to see his team bowled out for just 36 runs.”
Meanwhile, Latif also feels that India perhaps went out with the intention of dominating the Australian bowling but that mindset fired up back and bowled out for humiliating 36 while pointing out there are days when everything the bowler does get right and the edges carry to the fielders.
Latif further explained, “These things happen; there are days when the bowlers just hit the right spot 100 percent of the time and the edges go straight to fielders. I think the collapse occurred because the Indian batsmen perhaps came out with a mindset to attack the bowling and dominate.”
The former wicket-keeper batsman also pointed out that the Adelaide wicket changed its behavior on Day 3, and unfortunately went against India in the first Test against Australia.
He signed off by saying, “But the pitch changed its behavior and I think on the first two days, it had some spongy bounce and was a bit slow, but then, the pitch had hardened up a bit and the ball skidded beautifully for the bowlers, which is why all the edges went into the fielders.”
(With PTI Inputs)
