"Bitter Pill And We Have To Accept It": Ex-India Star On Test Series Loss To Australia

Australia reclaiming the Border-Gavaskar Trophy at Sydney after ten years meant India couldn't achieve its ambition of making a three-peat of Test series wins on Australian soil. It was a tour where India's batting didn't click in unison, as seen from them being unable to go past the 200-run mark six out of nine times. Barring a few bright sparks from the willows of Yashasvi Jaiswal, Nitish Kumar Reddy and KL Rahul to some extent, India's batting lacked the consistency, big scores and partnerships. Captain Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli (barring the hundred in Perth), and Shubman Gill had a tough time, while Rishabh Pant also struggled during the tour.

The poor batting performance in Australia was a continuation of the doubts over India's batting department coming good in tough conditions, especially after they lost 3-0 to New Zealand at home.

Former India spinner Sunil Joshi, who was the chief selector during the side's 2-1 series triumph in the 2020/21 tour, lamented the side's failures with the bat in their 3-1 defeat to Australia.

"It's pretty hard to take it, but the batters need to take responsibilities. Of course, the coaching staff also needs to be aware that how they can communicate with the players - be it the hard way or the subtle way. It's a bitter pill and we have to accept it. Every player on that tour understands what is the importance of playing for India.

"They would always like to give their best, but at times it may not happen. So the players need to be told what they need to add or adapt in terms of patience and a little bit of adjustment in their skill levels and techniques. For me, if you look at the dismissals of our top six batters in all five Test matches, I don't see any change in that.

"It looked