India vs Australia- "Cannot Hide From The Fact...": Dinesh Karthik's Sharp Take On India's Defeat In 3rd Test

Team India had a forgetful day on Friday after they faced a nine-wicket defeat against Australia in the third Test of the four-match series in Indore. After being bowled out for 163 in the second innings, the Rohit Sharma-led side had a lead by 75 runs, which was chased by the visitors in the just few hours on Day 3 at a loss of one-wicket. For Australia, Travis Head (49*) and Marnus Labuschagne (28*) stitched a parternship of 78 runs and helped them qualify into the final of the World Test Championship. It was a tough day for India as their top-batting order struggled to face the spinners as the Indore pitch offered a lot of turn.

The likes of Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and Cheteshwar Pujara have been able to deliver a promising performance in the ongoing series. Veteran India wicketkeeper Dinesh Karthik stated that the failure of Team India's top-order has been "camouflaged" by the contributions from the lower order.

“We cannot hide from the fact that India's top 7 haven't got the scores that they would like. We are talking about consistent collapses. Is batting difficult on this pit? Most definitely. But as a team they have chosen to play on these pitches which means they need to back themselves on them. They are capable of it, a lot of the players in isolation have probably played on tougher pitches and succeeded but playing international cricket is a different ball game,” said Karthik on Cricbuzz.

“When you get out a couple of times there are so many doubts that come, the confidence gets low. And then, to go out there and still back yourself just to play those big shots to get away from pressure can be really hard. I completely empathise with the Indian batters, it is hard work, but that is what Test cricket is,” he