Tim Paine : I feel I let our bowlers down today
Tim Paine has admitted that his fielding was not in line with the kind of standard he has set himself for and thus stated that he probably let his bowlers down with his dropped catches.
For Tim Paine, keeping is the ultimate level of sophistication from behind the stumps and that earned plaudits as one of the best keepers in the world at the moment. Yet it was anything but that in Sydney when he dropped as many as three catches to help India bounce back and settle a terrific draw.
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First, it was Rishabh Pant who got a reprieve on 3 and then on 56 – both off Lyon – before being dismissed for 97 by the same bowler. Paine further dropped a catch off Ravichandran Ashwin – a turning point in the game that could have helped them seal the victory. Paine admitted that the dropped catches were not cool on his part.
“I’m bitterly disappointed, I pride myself on my wicketkeeping. Haven’t had too many worse days than today, it’s a horrible feeling knowing our fast bowlers and our spinner bowled their hearts out and gave everything to the team.
“I certainly feel I let them down. I have to wear that, but I’ll get another crack at it next week so move on,” Paine said after the game, reported Cricbuzz.
Paine lauds Pant
Rishabh Pant became the first non-Australian player to have crossed 25 eight consecutive times in his career and today, his innings put India in a situation of winning the Test. Paine understands that giving chances to Pant was not right for they know what the Indian wicket-keeper can pull off with his batting.
“I thought like the whole innings we were creating chances to get him (Pant), we just had to hold one. I thought Lyon was bowling really well. Rishabh played an amazing innings, he played some superb shots, we know he’s got that in him but we also know he gives you chances and we just had to hold onto one.
“Thought it was a great innings, we bowled pretty well to him, but at no stage did we have that feeling (of the Headingley Test), we thought we had plenty on the board. Either we’d win or it would be a draw.”