‘It’s impossible to beat Team India in India’ – Ex-PCB chief Ramiz Raja. ‘The decider was Axar Patel’s batting,’ Ramiz Raja says.
Former Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Ramiz Raja has praised Team India for retaining the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. India dominated Australia in both the first and second Tests. The first Test won by an innings and 132 runs, while the second won by six wickets. The Rohit Sharma-led side came closer to earning a World Test Championship (WTC) final place after winning the second Test.
Raja quite impressed with Team India’s performance in both Tests. The former Pakistan captain declared on his YouTube channel that it is difficult for any side to overcome India at home. When it comes to Australia’s performance, Raja believes the Pat Cummins-led team did not prepare well. He also praised India all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja for his outstanding bowling performance in the second Test in Delhi.
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‘Australia is unprepared, and it is hard to overcome Team India in India,’ Ramiz Raja said of India’s supremacy at home.
“How Australia’s contest ended, similarly, Aussies used to finish games against subcontinent sides in Perth or Brisbane. The tables have shifted. That demonstrates that Australia is unprepare, particularly when it comes to playing good Test cricket in India. In India, it is difficult to defeat Team India. A lackluster performance against spin. In one session, nine wickets were lost. “Jadeja bowled really well,” Raja remarked of India’s overwhelming domination at home.
The former Pakistan cricketer also praised Axar Patel, the Indian all-rounder who struck a key knock in the first innings. Axar scored a gutsy knock of 74 off 115 balls to become India’s leading scorer. Afterwards, the Pakistani batsman lambasted the visitors’ ‘disastrous’ batting performance against the Indian spinners. He said that the Cummins-led team made mistakes throughout the Test.
“Axar Patel’s batting was the game-winner. He scored 60-70 runs given the circumstances. He was in a partnership with Ashwin when Australia might have taken a commanding lead. This is due to Australia’s lack of mental fortitude and technological inadequacies. Their pitching against spin is a disaster. They played bad shots, sweep shots, and raucous batting,” Raja said.
In the second Test at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, the Rahul Dravid-coached team defeated Australia by six wickets. In the first innings, Cummins and company scored 263 runs, while India scored 262. The Indian spin combo of Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin put on a magnificent performance as the tourists were dismiss for 113 runs. The all-rounder finished with a career-high 7-42, while veteran spinner Ravichandran Ashwin took three wickets in Australia’s second innings.
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