Bruised, broken, but never short of character: Rahane hails India's SCG show

Sydney, January 11 : Ajinkya Rahane-led India staged a stunning fightback on day five of the Pink Test against Australia to eke out a draw at the Sydney Cricket Ground. And the Indian players relished the effort on social media.

Navdeep Saini, who was playing his first Test, termed the game as a memorable debut while all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja hailed the tremendous spirit shown by the depleted Indian side. "Sweet Emotion's! Such a special & memorable debut match. #NeverGiveUp," Navdeep tweeted.

Opener Shubman Gill, playing only his second Test, wrote: "A team performance for the history books."

In spite of a hamstring injury, Hanuma Vihari hit an unbeaten 161-ball 23 while Ravichandran Ashwin hit 39 off 128 balls as the two defended away any hopes Australia had of registering a win.

With almost half of the side battling injuries, Rahane lauded the Indian side for showing grit and character and said there are a lot of things on which the team has to work ahead of the fourth Test.

"Bruised. Broken. But never short of character. Really happy with how the boys fought till the end. Lots to learn and improve as we look forward to Brisbane now," Rahane tweeted.

Rishabh Pant, who was hit on the elbow in the first innings, was promoted to the number five position and the wicket-keeper batsman played a counter-attacking knock of 97 in the second essay.
"Hard work truly pays off. Happy to contribute to the team. Well done boys. On to Brisbane," Pant tweeted.

Indian batsman KL Rahul hailed the "unbelievably spirited effort" of his side.

"Unbelievable Grit, determination and character shown by #TeamIndia. What an unbelievably spirited effort and some serious grind. Well done men test cricket at its best," KL Rahul tweeted.

Batting out 258 balls with a fierce home team throwing everything it had up its sleeves is no mean feat. But the Indian duo of Vihari and Ashwin stood ground and managed to do just that as they eked out a draw in what was nothing short of an action-packed fifth day.

With an injured Ravindra Jadeja waiting in the pavilion, it was important for the two to ensure they saw India to the end and that is just what they did as the players shook hands with an over left.