Former Indian cricketer Sunil Gavaskar criticized the Indian top-order batsmen for their careless dismissals on Day 3 (December 16) of the third Test against Australia in Brisbane. With the series tied at 1-1, India lost their early advantage after failing to make the most of winning the toss and bowling first.
Australia scored a big total of 445 in their first innings, thanks to centuries by Travis Head and Steve Smith. In reply, India’s top-order—Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, and Virat Kohli—couldn’t handle the Aussie pacers, Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood.
Jaiswal got out on the second ball of the innings, caught at the short square-leg while playing an uppish flick. Gill and Kohli also fell cheaply, scoring just 1 and 3 runs, respectively, due to loose shots.
During the lunch break on Day 3, Gavaskar shared his disappointment while speaking on Star Sports (as quoted by News18).
India was struggling at 27/3 in the 10th over, with KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant trying to steady the innings. However, India still trails Australia’s first-innings score by a huge margin of 418 runs.
“If it was on the fourth stump, I could understand” – Gavaskar on Kohli’s dismissal
Kohli, who managed only 3 runs off 16 balls, is having a tough year in Test cricket, with an average of just 25.06 in 17 innings.
Though he seemed to regain form with a century in the second innings of the first Test in Perth, he has struggled since then, scoring 7, 11, and 3 in his last three innings at Adelaide and Brisbane.
