Natarajan, who came in as a net bowler, joined fellow rookies Mohammed Siraj, Washington Sundar and Shardul Thakur to restrict Australia to 369, which according to Rohit is no mean feat.
“We bowled pretty well considering the amount of experience we have in our bowling unit. This is a great experience… https://t.co/wt5sL0dM7r
— BCCI (@BCCI) 1610792044000
“Natarajan bowled pretty well, to be honest. Playing outside the country (internationals) for the first time and bowling to such batsmen, it wasn’t going to be easy and he was not under any pressure,” Rohit said about the debutant, who was the pick of the bowlers with 3/78 in 24.2 overs.
“From ball one, he was right up there. He showed a lot of composure, is a strong character who doesn’t speak much but we all know he has a solid personality. He wants to do well for the team and also for himself. He is here to stay,” he said.
For Rohit, considering that cumulative experience of the bowling attack was four Test matches, they need to be lauded for keeping Australia under check on a good batting wicket.
“Most of these guys are playing for the first time in Australia. Siraj has played a couple of games and Saini played in Sydney. Obviously, there’s not a lot of experience there.
“They showed a lot of discipline and overall if I had to analyse the performance of these bowlers, I would say they bowled pretty well. It’s a good pitch still. This is a great experience for them bowling against the best batters, and test themselves,” he said.
Rohit believes that each and every youngster in this set-up knows that with so much competition for places, there aren’t too many chances that will be up for grabs.
“Basically it boils down to where they are coming from. There is a lot of hunger to perform. You don’t get a lot of opportunities at this level and we all know that. So when you get an opportunity, you have to make that count.”
It’s not every team that can restrict Australia to less than 400 hundred in six completed innings and that’s a big credit to the bowling unit.
“The A tours must have helped. Shardul, Navdeep and Siraj have played a lot of A team cricket. They know how difficult it can be in Australia. Their understanding of conditions helped them.
“To not let Australia score 400 is an achievement in itself. These tours they have done have helped them stay in control,” he said.
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Indian rookies take 3 wickets each to bundle out Australia on Day 2
Show Captions
<p>Thangarasu Natarajan, Washington Sundar and Shardul Thakur took three wickets each to bowl out Australia for 369 runs in the first innings at Lunch on Day 1 in the 4th Test at The Gabba in Brisbane. (Getty Images)</p>
<p>It was a fine bowling performance from the Indian rookies as Australia lost five wickets for 95 runs in the first session. (AFP Photo)</p>
<p>Shardul Thakur (3/94) and Washington Sundar (3/89) accounted for four of the five wickets to fall on Day 2 and Natarajan returned to the attack to snare the last Aussie wicket. (Getty Images)</p>
<p>Natarajan’s 3/78 are the second best figures by an Indian left-arm seamer in the debut innings after RP Singh’s 4/89 against Pakistan in Faisalabad 2005/06. (AP Photo)</p>
<p>Washington Sundar’s figures of 3/89 are the best by a visiting spinner in the first innings at The Gabba since Ashely Giles’ 4/101 back in 2002. (AFP Photo)</p>
<p>The Indian rookies bowled with discipline and were helped by some injudicious shot selection by their opponents. (Getty Images)</p>
<p>The Indian pace attack, led by Mohammed Siraj in his third Test, performed over and above most expectations despite dealing with yet another injury in the form of Navdeep Saini. (AFP Photo)</p>
He also praised his Mumbai teammate Shardul and feels that the more he plays, the better he will become in terms of consistency.
“I understand Shardul’s strength and he likes to swing the ball. Going for that he can go for runs as well but he likes to pitch it up and swing so that he can nick it off batsmen and he did that to Tim Paine and that is his strength.
“Definitely, he has got the temperament to play at the highest level. Most importantly he has the right attitude and I liked what I saw,” he concluded.
