'Best Indian batter' named as ex-CSK star kicks aside Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma

Former Indian cricketer Subramaniam Badrinath heaped praise on opening batter KL Rahul after Day 3 of the third Test against Australia in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2024-25. Subramaniam Badrinath described KL Rahul as the lone warrior in the Indian lineup against challenging situations in the match.

The Men in Blue ended Day 3 of the third Test match with a total of 51-4 in the first innings at the Gabba in Brisbane on Monday, December 16. Team India is trailing by 394 runs in the ongoing Test match. The match has been hit by rain on Day 3 as well, leaving Indian and Australian players frustrated.

KL Rahul Remains Unbeaten with 33 Runs on Challenging Day in Brisbane

The Indian team got off to a poor start in response to Australia's first-innings total of 445 runs. Young opening batter Yashasvi Jaiswal was dismissed for four runs off left-arm pacer Mitchell Starc on the second ball. Starc then removed Shubman Gill in his second over, as India collapsed to 6/2 in just 2.1 overs.

Virat Kohli (3) and Rishabh Pant (9) failed to cross double digits. However, KL Rahul (33*) remained unbeaten at the stumps alongside captain Rohit Sharma (0). India needs to score 245 runs to avoid the follow-on. Rahul looked in good touch despite losing wickets from the other end and frequent rain breaks.

Best Indian Batter Without a Doubt - Subramaniam Badrinath

Only 33.1 overs of play were possible on the third day as rain interrupted the match at least seven times from the beginning of the day. India lost four wickets in just 17 overs, but KL Rahul showed some resilience against the Australian pacers in tough conditions.

S. Badrinath took to the social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter) to praise Rahul for his performance. Badrinath shared an image with a "Game of Thrones" reference as Rahul tries to navigate through a barrage of challenges on the third day of the match.

"Best Indian Batter without a doubt 👍🇮🇳 #AUSvIND @klrahul 👏, " wrote the caption.

Best Indian Batter without a doubt 👍🇮🇳 #AUSvIND @klrahul 👏 pic.twitter.com/PIQFgnDcP9

— S.Badrinath (@s_badrinath) December 16, 2024

Jasprit Bumrah The Lone Warrior with the Ball for India in the First Innings

Earlier, Australia resumed Day 3 at 405-7, and India quickly dismissed the remaining three Australian batsmen. Wicketkeeper Alex Carey was the last to go after scoring 70 runs. Team India pace bowler Jasprit Bumrah finished with impressive figures of 6-76 from 28 overs, including seven maiden overs.

Mohammed Siraj took 2 wickets for 97 runs, while Akash Deep and Nitish Kumar Reddy secured one wicket each. Ravindra Jadeja went wicketless, conceding 95 runs in 23 overs. Bumrah is the leading wicket-taker of the series with 18 wickets at an outstanding average of 11.72 and a strike rate of 27.33.

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