"Siraj Threw Ball Towards Smith...": Ganguly Explains What India Missed At Start Of WTC Final
Sourav Ganguly has pointed out what he feels India lacked in bowling on the opening day of the WTC final against Australia.
Australia defeated India by 209 runs in the final of the World Test Championship to claim their maiden title last week. The game was dominated by the Pat Cummins-led side and India barely had their moments of joy. Australia ended Day 1 with a score of 327 for 3 and that put the side well ahead in the game. India did make a good comeback on the following day, but it was certainly late for them as the batting side still managed to post 469 runs on the board.
Former India captain and ex-BCCI president Sourav Ganguly feels that the Rohit Sharma-led side lacked intent in bowling on the opening day of the summit clash.
"Mohammad Siraj threw a ball towards Steve Smith in the first session of Day 2 in the WTC final and then India's bowling became different from both ends. Such an intent was missing (on Day 1)," Ganguly told Sports Tak.
On the first ball of the 94th over of the Australian innings on Day 2, Smith defended the ball back to pacer Siraj, who showed some aggression and threw the ball towards the batter. Following the incident, Australia scored 101 runs and lost their last six wickets.
Talking further about the match, Australia bundled India out for 296 runs, taking a first-innings lead of 173 runs. The side then declared its second innings at 270 for 8, setting a 444-run target for India.
The previous season's finalists ended Day 4 at 164 for 3 but the final day witnessed a batting collapse and India were bundled out for 234 runs.
India Cricket Team
Australia Cricket Team
Steven Smith