Dubai camp assisted a lot in Ranchi draw, says Shaun Marsh

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Shaun Marsh - Joe Burns
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Shaun Marsh. (Photo by Michael Dodge/Getty Images)

Shaun Marsh and Peter Handscomb gelled vividly to put up a valiant fight against the Indians which saw Australia draw the third Test match at Ranchi. The Australians found themselves in huge trouble early into their second innings as they lost a handful of wickets for a few runs.

The hosts were in a dominant position in the game and looked definite to take a 2-1 lead in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. It was then, when these two Aussie batsmen brought some discipline into their games and governed their innings firmly to earn a draw for their side.

Shaun Marsh gave a fitting reply to his doubters and successfully proved why he was chosen before fellow left-hander Usman Khawaja. His 53 run knock of 197 balls contributed hugely in breaking down the momentum for the Indian side. Peter Handscomb, on the other hand, was equally impressive on his way to 72 consuming 200 deliveries. Both the batsmen put on a partnership that stretched almost 4 hours preventing the Indians from winning the tie.

In recent times, the Australians have struggled to bat for a long period of time at one go and has resulted in their poor performance in Test cricket overseas. The Australian squad particularly worked on this matter, just before their visit to India in a training camp at the United Arab Emirates.

“It definitely helped. We obviously had a great couple of weeks over there to get us ready for these conditions,” Marsh said of the Dubai camp.

“It certainly helped out there today, knowing what we’ve done in the past.

“Our preparation has given the guys a lot of confidence to go out there and play the game.”

Ravindra Jadeja was expected to shine on the Ranchi pitch while people expected the Australians to have a tough time. Coach Darren Lehmann also admitted that the 5th and final day would be a test for their batsmen specially the left-handers against the in form Jadeja, who would take advantage of the rough patch outside the off stump. Jadeja was phenomenal with the ball once again with 9 wickets from the Test match but could not seal a victory for India as the Australian batsmen showed their class on the final day.

“It was tough,” Marsh said of the thorough examination. “He’s a quality bowler and I thought he bowled fantastically well.

“We didn’t try and think about the end result too much, just about playing each ball on its merits and I thought we did that really well together.”

Aussie skipper, Steve Smith, who was flamboyant with the bat in the first inning was very happy with Shaun Marsh and Peter Handscomb. The 27-year-old praised both of them and believes that their gutsy partnership will not only boost their confidence but the confidence of the whole team. Smith preferred to stay positive and said that the team has definitely gained from the final day of the third Test before heading onto the decider at Dharamshala.

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