Anil Kumble described India's comeback in the Boxing Day cricket Test against Australia as 'exceptional' and said it was now on the batsmen to apply themselves.
MELBOURNE: Indian captain Anil Kumble on Wednesday described India's comeback in the Boxing Day cricket Test against Australia as 'exceptional' and said it was now on the batsmen to apply themselves and consolidate the position for the team.
Kumble, who led from the front by picking up five wickets, said the track was on the slower side but there was no reason why his batsmen could not put up a big score if they applied themselves.
"I've always believed that the first innings of the first Test of a series is very important and we've done exceptionally well after being on the back foot at lunch, so I'm very pleased with the way everyone's performed today," Kumble said after the opening day's play which saw Australia scoring 337 for 9.
"At 135 for no loss it was important that we came back well into the Test match. The wicket of (Phil) Jaques, and Zaheer (Khan) bowled Ricky Ponting with a beauty and then things started to happen," he said.
Though Kumble thought that his pacers did not have enough luck early on, he expressed satisfaction over the way things fell in place for India.
"We were a bit unlucky earlier on, both RP Singh and Zaheer bowled brilliantly initially, but you should also give credit to the way Matt Hayden and Phil Jaques batted. At the end it was a good day for us."
"The intensity was good after lunch and we kept at it, we kept coming hard at Australia", he said.
"I'm really happy with the way the bowlers bowled and to get nine wickets on the first day after losing the toss I think it was a brilliant effort," Kumble said.
Tailenders Stuart Clark (21) and Mitchell Johnson (10) put on a 25-run unbeaten stand for the last wicket and defied India's attempt to dismiss the home side on the first day itself.
But, Kumble said now his team had to put up a big total after polishing off the Australian tail.
"We're still in the game, so I think it's important that we finish off Australia's remaining wicket and then get a big score," he said.
"The wicket is definitely on the slow side, but if you apply yourself there are runs to get, Matt Hayden showed that, and if our batsmen apply themselves then it will happen."
The 37-year-old Indian captain said that he got the complete support of his team mates who wanted him to concentrate on his bowling.
"I had this problem when I played in India as a captain and when I held back and was not bowling, the rest of the players asked why I had stopped so I kept bowling," he said.
"So today I had to do that and it's important that I ensure I bowl the number of overs that I need to bowl as a bowler and I was really happy with the way things went today," Kumble added.
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