"Australia defeated us in every department" - Kirti Azad on India's loss in the WTC final

Kirti Azad has highlighted that Australia outplayed India in every department of the game in the World Test Championship (WTC) final.

Pat Cummins and Co. completed a 209-run thrashing of Rohit Sharma and Co. at The Oval in London on Sunday, June 11. They posted a mammoth first-innings total of 469 runs and never let go of the advantage after dismissing India for 296 in their first essay.

In a video shared by Sports Tak on their YouTube channel, Kirti Azad pointed out that Australia were the dominant team in the WTC final:

"Australia defeated us in every department. Their bowling and batting were perfect. In the first innings, if we see the Australian bowlers, they were absolutely accurate, they kept bowling on the same line even if they were not getting wickets."

The 1983 World Cup-winning all-rounder highlighted that the Indian bowlers, unlike their Australian counterparts, seemed to get carried away by the green surface:

"It seemed like our bowlers got overexcited. They couldn't maintain the line and length they should have kept. So we lost the match in the first innings itself."

India reduced Australia to 76/3 early after Lunch on Day 1. However, they allowed Travis Head (163) and Steve Smith (121) to string together a 285-run fourth-wicket partnership to virtually take the game beyond India's reach.

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"If we had bowled well and restricted them to 300-325 in the first innings, the match could have been made" - Kirti Azad

Travis Head carted the Indian bowlers all around the park.

Kirti Azad reckons the final could have been a closer affair had India restricted Australia to 300-odd in their first innings:

"We did bowl a little better in the second innings but if we had bowled well and restricted them to 300-325 in the first innings, the match could have been made because India scored 296 runs."

The cricketer-turned-politician concluded by stating that Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane flattered to deceive in India's second innings:

"The bowling was good in the second innings but the first-innings lead was so much, that it didn't seem possible. When Rahane and Kohli were playing, it seemed they could do it, and India have a deep batting lineup as well, but it was unfortunate that they threw away their wickets."

Kohli (49) and Rahane (46) added 86 runs for the fourth wicket to raise hopes of a miraculous victory. However, both of them played reckless shots on the final morning as Australia went on to register an easy win.