Akash Deep and Jasprit Bumrah saved India the blushes during the Brisbane Test with a resolute 10th wicket partnership but the rookie pacer on Sunday said his focus was on wholesome contribution to the team rather than looking to "merely save the follow-on." (More Cricket News)
With the Indian batters, barring KL Rahul and Ravindra Jadeja, failing once again, the obstinate 47-run partnership between Bumrah and Akash took India past the follow-oꦗn mark during🌌 the Gabba Test, which ended in a draw.
"We come to bat lower down the order, so contributions of 20-25-30 runs are very valuable. My mindset is just to contribute. I wasn't looking to save the follow-on that day; I was just looking not to get out. My mindset was this, God willing, we were able to save the follow-on," Akash told reporters in Melbourne.
Akash smashed Pat Cummins for a four to avoid the follow-on as the Indian dressing room broke into cᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚ𒀱ᩚᩚᩚelebrations on day four.
“When you save the match from such a situation, the entire🐷 team gets the confidence and 🐓our dressing room reflected just that. Everyone was having fun and enjoying."
Salvaging a draw after being on the brink o🅰f losing▨ in Brisbane, the Indian team is now filled with confidence, feels Akash.
"If you look at it, it's 50-50, even though we were behind in the last match. But the confidence we built on the last day, we still have that confidence. So, I can say it's 50-50, and this Test match (Melbourne) is very important for both the teams🎃."
Akash did not feature in the playing XI for the first two Tests against Australia but m𒅌ade his way into the team for the third Test.
The 28-year-old gave a good account himself, and was unluckyꦑ to miss out on the wicket of veteran batter Steve Smith, whom he troubled no end.
The pacer, who is playing on forei♓gn soil for the first time, revealed tips from B❀umrah helped him.
"This is my first time playing in Australi꧋a. Jassi bhai keeps on telling us things about how we can go about our job; it makes our job easy.”
“He told me one thing, ‘Don’t get too excited. Just focℱus on your discipline. How you go about your job in Indian conditio🌸ns, repeat that here.' He told me just this.”
Short-pitched balls against Head: Akash
Travis Head contin🉐ues to be a thorn in India's flesh. After being dismissed for 11 in his first innings of the series, he has gone on to score 89, 140 and 152 in his next three outings.
Obviously, he did not detail the plans but hinted at a bouncer strategy agai🌊nst the left-hander.
"Jo plan hai wo🍒 nahi bata sakte, wo bhi taiyyar ho jayenge (We can’t reveal our plans, as they’ll prepare accordingly)."
"As fast bowlers, we will stick to the same 𒀰deliveries and maintain discipline in our bowling. We wi🍸ll bowl from both over and around the wicket, assess the pitch and conditions, and plan accordingly."
"I think Travis Head, in particular, struggles against short balls. We won’t🦋 let him settle at the crease. We’ll target specific areas and hope to force him into mistakes, which will create chances for us," he stated.
Akash maintained that India will co💯ntinue to find ways to strike with the new ball.
"The plan is the s💫ame because we have played three matches here and we have seen that chances a✤re being created with the new ball. If we take wickets early with the new ball, then it's a problem for them too," he added.
