IND v AUS 2020: 'It's very hard to put those feelings into words'- Virat Kohli reflects on India's humiliating loss at Adelaide
Indian skipper Virat Kohli was devastated by India's horror show with the bat on day three at Adelaide. He expressed how painful the loss was for both him and his men.
With a lead of 53 runs in the first innings, Team India looked confident to try and bat Australia out of the pink-ball Test. However, day three of the Test match proved to be one of the worst days in the history of Indian Test cricket. The Men in Blue slumped to an almighty collapse, losing nine wickets for just 36 runs.
To make things worse, Mohammed Shami walked off the field as he got hit by a short-ball from Pat Cummins. This meant that India ended their innings on 36-9 and posted their lowest-ever total in Test cricket. Australia comfortably chased down the target of 90 and won by 8 wickets, taking an important 1-0 lead in the series.
"It's very hard to put those feeling into words. We had a lead of 60-odd when we arrived. And then just collapsed. Played two days of good cricket to get in a position and then just lose it in an hour. Really hurts," Virat Kohli said after the end of the first Test.
Probably didn't have enough intent in the batting today: Virat Kohli
Virat Kohli credited Australian bowlers Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood for bowling with a fantastic line and length, which made life difficult for the Indian batsmen. However, he reckons there was not a lot of intent in the way the Men in Blue batted in the second innings.
The 32-year-old feels there should have been more urgency to score runs from the batsmen. The Indian batsmen didn't try to be positive against the opposition bowling and were passive in their approach. Thus, the Indian skipper reckons this is something his team needs to realize and learn from.
"Probably didn't have enough intent in the batting today. It's something that needs to be reflected and learnt from. There were some good balls. But I don't think it did anything drastic. Just the atmosphere was created where runs were difficult to come by," Virat Kohli asserted.
Virat Kohli's expressions after the game perfectly sums up the kind of scars this Test is going to leave on the minds of the Indian team. With Australia likely to have David Warner back for the Boxing Day Test, the challenge is only going to get tougher.
Moreover, Virat Kohli will be returning to India for the birth of his first child. With him absent and Shami still under an injury cloud, things look gloomy for the Men in Blue. They will have to find some inspiration to get back up on their feet and try to make a comeback in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.