Former England pacer Steve Harmison feels that if Virat Kohli had been in the mix of India`s Test side, the visitors then would have chased down the target against the `Three Lions` in the third match.
Speaking with ESPNCricinfo, Harmison said, “India has scored more hundreds, more top-order runs, and more new ball wickets, but England has got a knack of finding a way to win. Finding a way of creating an event throughout a session to change the course of the game. For me, India has to start believing. This is where the likes of Virat Kohli were unbelievable. In a fourth innings chase, he goes and wins the game comfortably. He would have won that game comfortably at Lord`s”.
In an attempt to chase the target on Day 5 at the Lord`s Cricket Ground, India kept losing wickets at regular intervals. Despite the continuous fall of wickets, premier all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja kept toiling along with tail-enders, Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj.
But Jadeja`s efforts went in vain after Siraj was dismissed in an unfortunate manner. Following his dismissal, India lost the third of the five-match Test series by 22 runs.
The loss also led England to take a lead of 2-1 against the Shubman Gill-led India. Both teams will lock horns against each other for the fourth Test match, scheduled to be played in Manchester from July 23 onwards.
Virat Kohli announced his retirement from Test cricket before the start of the five-match series against England. His retirement from the format also marked the end of a glorious career that spanned for 14-long years. Before his retirement, India`s traditional opening batsman, Rohit Sharma, too drew curtains on his longest format career. The duo will continue to don the Indian ODI jersey, as they have stepped away from the T20I format as well.
In his decorated Test career, Kohli made 123 appearances in white clothing, scoring 9,230 runs at an average of 46.85, with 30 centuries and 31 fifties in 210 innings and the best score of 254*. He is India`s fourth-highest run-getter in the format, behind Sachin Tendulkar (15,921 runs), Rahul Dravid (13,265 runs) and Sunil Gavaskar (10,122 runs).
(With ANI Inputs)
