England skipper Joe Root said he was disappointed with his team’s showing especially on the final day and praised Rishabh Pant, calling him a difficult batsman to bowl at.
“It was disappointing but credit to India. They have out-skilled us. They have read the surface well, showed how to bat and were excellent with the ball as well. We just have to keep finding ways of getting better in similar conditions in the future,” said Root.
“It was a frustrating way to finish this game. But credit to Rishabh and Washington [Sundar], that partnership was outstanding. The way he [Pant] bats makes it difficult for bowlers to build pressure, and to set fields as a captain is quite difficult when he pulls out a reverse sweep to a guy [James Anderson] with 600 wickets,” he added.
Root also felt India exploited the conditions better and managed to grab the key moments in the game often, which proved decisive.
“We did not react to changes in surfaces as well as India did. They exploited it better. They found ways of managing turn and non-turn better than we did. I do think there were periods in the game where we found ourselves at parity and India managed to grab them. Generally in low-scoring Test matches, that is a difference.”
