Tuesday, August 12, 2008

Kumble blames middle order


After suffering an eight-wicket thrashing by Sri Lanka in the third and final Test, Indian skipper Anil Kumble Monday said it was their inconsistency and failure of the middle order to put up a big score on a good wicket that cost them the match and the series.

"The batsmen did not put up a good show here and that probably cost us the series. It was critical that the middle order got runs and there was not enough consistency from any of the batters, and that probably what cost us the game and the Test match here," Kumble said.
Kumble said it was a good toss to win but the batsmen failed to capitalise on the early starts. "Having won the toss it was important to get a big score. We got a good start but could not capitalise. For a new batsman to go straightway and face two spinners, it is never easy. If they had converted the early starts, it would have been a different story. Overall, we did not play quality cricket to win the series," he said.

Although dejected with the batting display, Kumble however, had some words of praise for the bowlers. "Bowlers put their hearts out. Ishant showed brilliant performance throughout the series. Zaheer showed lot of character. Harbhajan was fantastic to come back from all that he had been through during the last couple of months," he said.

With as many as three players sustaining injuries in the match and Kumble admitted he had never witnessed so many injuries within a day.

No comments: