Rohit Sharma after India's third Test defeat to Australia: We had to be brave, but we were not
- Planet Sport writer
- 3 March 2023
Indian captain Rohit Sharma rued defeat, as Australia completed a nine-wicket victory on day three of the third Test in Indore on Friday.
Pursuing a 75-run target, Australia moved to 75 for one on the back of opener Travis Head's 49 not out.
India had been bowled out for 109 in the first innings and 163 in the second. Australia's first innings had amounted to 197 all out.
"When you lose a Test match, there's a lot of things that didn't go our way," said Sharma.
"To start with, we didn't bat well in the first innings. We understand how important it is to put runs on the board in the first innings.
"And obviously when they got an 80- or 90-run lead, we needed to put in a big performance with the bat, but we couldn't do that, taking just a 75-run lead.
Australian spinner Nathan Lyon was named player of the match. He took three wickets in the first innings and eight in the second.
"When you are playing on challenging pitches you have to bowl. We allowed their bowlers to bowl in one spot. Not to take any credit away from their bowlers, Lyon especially," added Sharma.
"Honestly, we haven't thought about it yet. We just finished this Test now, so we need to regroup and try. We need to understand that we need to improve as a team."
India won the first Test in Nagpur and the second in Delhi. The fourth and final Test will start in Ahmedabad on 9 March.
"We had to try and be brave, which I think we were not. We can take a lot of credit as well, how we batted in the first two games," concluded Sharma.
"One odd game can happen where things don't come together, but even then you need players to come together and chip in.
"We wanted a few guys to stand up, but it didn't happen. We were slightly behind and we did not apply ourselves the way we would have liked to."