#INDvAUS 3rd Test: Did Aussies disrespect Indian physio? Steve Smith gives his version

Australia captain Steve Smith said on Monday after the drawn third Test in Ranchi against India that he was proud of the way Peter Handscomb and Shaun Marsh carried out the plans to save the Test. Smith also said that Australia had the momentum going into the final Test in Dharamshala starting on Saturday and that India are “hurting a little bit in their change room” after not being able to win,

Excerpts from his interaction with the media after the match:

On the fight on final day:

Very proud. They (Handscomb and Marsh) had magnificent plans, they backed their defence for a long period of time. To see the game out for as long as they did was an outstanding performance. I'm really proud of the way they did that. That's one of the things we've been talking about – being resilient and sticking out the tough times. The way Petey and Shaun did that was magnificent.

On the momentum in this series:

If there's anything called momentum in cricket, it's with us at the moment. India coming today would have expected to bowl us out. I’m sure they're hurting a little bit in their change room. If there's anything with momentum in cricket, it's probably on our side. It’s one-all and we have the decider in Dharamshala, which is really exciting.

On the two wickets falling in the first session including himself:

It wasn’t ideal to lose two set batters at once. That's one thing we always talk about here in India to not lose wickets in clumps. It wasn’t ideal but I have faith in the boys behind me. Peter's looked very good in every game so far without going on to make a score. Today, the way he did that, his 72* is worth 140 in my eyes. I thought he played beautifully and Shaun as well, they stuck to their plans throughout and never shied away from it.

On the way the pitch behaved throughout:

I didn’t expect the game to go five days certainly before a ball was bowled. It didn't look it would hold for five days like he (curator) said and he was correct. It was a really nice wicket, a little bit of rough around the leg-stump for Jadeja and O’Keefe to hit. It was a nice wicket.

On spending so much time on the field when India were batting and then come out and save the Test:

Tired. Never spent 210 overs in the field before. O’Keefe was joking for a minute, if he bowled two more (actually 3 because he bowled 77 overs) he was going to get the ball off and get a new one from his end. It was a long time on the field. But credit to them. Pujara and Saha batted exceptionally well. It was a long time in the field. Credit to our boys the way they came out today (Monday) after having such heavy legs to be able hold out for the draw.

On implementing Dubai lessons before coming here:

It's having a game plan and being able to stick to it. Having a defence and sometimes a defence is sweeping the ball out of the rough, although we didn't see any of it today. Guys were backing their defence, that's important to do in these conditions. The way Pete and Shaun backed their defence was exceptional.

On his own dismissal:

I could have got a fraction further down the wicket and used the outside of my pad. I just misjudged it, made a mistake and paid the price.

On the Ishant Sharma incident when Matt Renshaw withdraw when the bowler was running in: 

Murali Vijay was at midwicket and moved a few steps to his left as the bowler was running in. It put him off and Renshaw is entitled to back away. I’m not sure what happened with Ishant, he wasn’t overall happy, He bowled fairly well after that, got angry, bowled pretty well the next couple of overs after that

On whether there was still undercurrent between the two sides:

There's always a little bit of tension when Australia and India are playing in Test matches. As far as I’m concerned, it's being played in the right spirit on the field, it's been a tough hard grind. That's how I'd explain it, no issue with that.

On saving a Test after a long time:

I’m sure all of the boys who batted out in the middle – Renshaw, Shaun and Handscomb – the three that did very well here. I’m sure they will take loads out of what they did in the second innings. It's never easy to bat in the fourth innings in India to save the game. I was exceptionally proud the way they went about their business.

On the confidence he has of his batsmen after Monday’s effort:

It's great signs for us. Everyone is contributing as such. Everyone is in good form we have had a good three Test matches, we've played some very good cricket. We were ourselves 100 runs short in the first innings. We would have liked to get 550 and be able to get in front of the game from there. Things could have ended differently, that's the game of cricket. It's great to see the batters have worked very hard with their plans and are contributing.

On shoulder grabbing incident:

I was a bit disappointed. I didn't actually do anything. Virat was having a go at me saying I was disrespecting Patrick Farhart. If I was as to do anything he did a terrific job to get Virat out on the field. He's a terrific physio.

On going to Dharamshala with one-all:

At one-all, there’s plenty to play for in Dharamshala. It's going to be another great Test match to be involved in. Hopefully, this Australian cricket team can continue to adapt and show fight and resilience and put another display on in Dharamshala.