"Aussies were more desperate and India were over confident" - Twitter reacts as the Men in Yellow win the 3rd IND vs AUS Test

Australia stamped their ticket for the finals of the World Test Championship (WTC) following a thumping nine-wicket win over India in the third Border-Gavaskar Test at the Holkar Stadium in Indore.

The visitors were tasked with chasing 76 runs in the fourth innings to claim their second win in India since 2004. A fierce contest was expected after R Ashwin took Usman Khawaja's wicket off the second delivery of the day.

However, a calm and composed effort by Travis Head and Marnus Labuschagne took Australia home within 20 overs. The duo began on a cautious note but upped the ante once the ball was changed per the request of the Indians. Head, in particular, took on the spinners and scored a sublime 49-run knock off 53 deliveries.

Team India could not apply pressure on the visitors despite striking early in the day. Barring a few half chances, the bowlers were average at best in terms of their performance on Day 3. Only three bowlers were used by Rohit Sharma, with Axar Patel and Mohammed Siraj not getting the chance to bowl.

The Australian fans were elated after being on the losing side across the first two Tests while the Indian outfit was far from pleased with their team's performance.

One fan on Twitter wrote:

"India were horrible & Australia were clinical. Aussies were more desperate & India were over confident. Sometime loss teach you more lesson than wins. Delhi taught Aussies the lesson. Rank turners hit back to India, its true Indian batters can't play spin."

India were horrible & Australia were clinical. Aussies were more desperate & India were over confident.

Sometime loss teach you more lesson than wins. Delhi taught Aussies the lesson.

Rank turners hit back to India,its true Indian batters can't play spin.

#IndvsAus #INDvAUS

Here are some of the other reactions on Twitter:

Well played @CricketAus 👏🏽 #INDvAUS #BGT2023 https://t.co/sjpOcbydoW

Steve Smith may not be having the best of times with the bat this series, but his captaincy has been absolutely spot-on!

#INDvAUS

Thank You, India for losing the Test in 2 1/2 days and giving us Friday half-day and Saturday and Sunday full-day holiday to celebrate your defeat. 😂 #Cricket #INDvAUS

This loss will sting India. And it will sting them bad.

A loss at home is almost like an anomaly.

Utterly disappointing performance after dominating the first two Tests.

Completely outplayed!

But that being said, the Motera Test is set up beautifully.

#INDvAUS

Embarrassing defeat for Team India. Wrapped up in 2 days.

Batsman struggling to score 30+, bowlers bowling no ball.

The Indian team looked complacent and out of sorts. Our batsmen are not equipped to play on turning tracks.

#INDvAUS

Fire that Indore pitch curator already. 😆 #INDvAUS

India’s bowling is relentless especially in these conditions but their batting is full of over the hill players who are playing based on reputation rather than performance. It was just the tail that helped India mount a decent score in the 1st 2 tests. #Cricket #INDvAUS

Not the first time Indian bowlers have lost their control trying too hard to produce wickets. It happened twice in South Africa when the pacers kept bowling loose balls in between. In this game, it was the spinners. Having said that, India lost this Test with the bat. #INDvAUS

Indians after losing the test on a vicious turner which they dug for Australia. #INDvAUS #AUSvIND https://t.co/U7rCVO3ibI

Fans: we want a 5 day full test match in India

Bcci:

#INDvAUS #INDvsAUSTest https://t.co/mGxWybIG73

A reality check for team India. Form is more important then star power. Relying too much on the pitch factor they should work on their own talent. Sometimes keeping things simple is more important.
#INDvAUS

Safe to say the decision to leave Travis Head out of the first Test was not the right one

A counter attacking innings that quickly deflated IND’s chances of a miracle win

👏 #INDvAUS

"If we had batted well in the first innings then things would have been different" - Team India skipper Rohit Sharma

The Men in Blue will now have to churn out a win in the final Test against Australia to secure a berth in the World Test Championship (WTC) final. A win in Indore would have sealed a place as well as granted the Men in Blue the No.1 ranking in Tests as well.

Should they lose their final encounter in Ahmedabad, they will be reliant on the series result between Sri Lanka and New Zealand, with the subcontinent still in contention to make it to the finals.

Skipper Rohit Sharma dissected the defeat during the post-match presentation, lamenting the batting performance during the first innings, he said:

"When you lose a Test match there are a lot of things which didn't go our way. Obviously we didn't bat well in the first innings and we understand how important it is to put runs on the board. Once they got a 80-90 run lead, we had to produce another innings with the bat and we were not able to do that. If we had batted well in the first innings then things would have been different."

The fourth Test between India and Australia will begin on March 9 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. The Men in Blue have a 2-1 lead in the series courtesy of their wins in Nagpur and Delhi.

Will the Men in Blue qualify for the WTC Finals for the second time running? Let us know what you think.