Tim Paine was a dejected captain as Australia suffered a three-wicket defeat at the hands of India in the fourth Test at the Gabba.
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By virtue of this loss, Australia also conceded the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2-1 to India. It was their second successive Test series loss to Indians at home.
"We are absolutely disappointed. Whether it was with bat, ball or in the field, every time we had a chance to go ahead of the game, we let it slip. Yesterday, we continuously lost wickets, when we were trying to put our foot down and could not get quite a partnership together. And everytime when India needed to take a wicket, someone managed to do it for them. So, you got to give them the credit," Paine said in the post-match press conference, as quoted by ANI.
"They won the key moments. We turned up in Sydney on Day 5 and on Gabba on Day 5 in good positions but could not get the job done. There are somethings we should and could have done better. But at the same time, I think India on both these occasion were great with the bat," he added.
Notably, Australia hadn’t lost a Test at the Gabba since 1988. The hosts were confident of being at the best in Brisbane, but little did they know this inexperienced Indian team, with half of their players ruled out due to injury, still had the courage and strength to fight back.
India were chasing 328 in the fourth innings. It took the tourists Shubman Gill's 91-run knock, followed by Cheteshwar Pujara's 211-ball 56 and Rishabh Pant's unbeaten 89 runs to get over the line.
Hailing Pant for his stunning display with the bat on Day 5, Paine said: "Rishbah, in particular, is so skillful. He can hit the ball absolutely everywhere from any line or length."
The Australian skipper also lauded India’s bench strength.
"Whether they were big name players or not, they showed that they have got some depth and some very good skillful bowlers and batsmen. They outplayed us, I do not think we took them lightly. They are a really proud cricket country and got a huge population and a lot of skillful players to pick from. The guys who came in, they played their role," Paine remarked.
(With ANI inputs)
