Former left-arm spinner Murali Kartik shared his views after Team India’s defeat to England in the third Test at Lord’s. He highlighted that it was the second time under coach Gautam Gambhir, where the team failed to chase down a low total. However, defending 193 in the final innings, England pulled off an amazing 22-run victory to take a 2-1 lead in the series.

“These small changes get tricky always. You don’t know when to press the accelerator or to go slowly. The experience for such chases is important. This is happening twice in Gautam Gambhir’s tenure that a small chase was not successful. He will be angry with himself as well and with the team,” he said on Cricbuzz.

“Rishabh Pant is very instinctive. I don’t think he thinks before and then does something. The way he played a one-handed shot, it was getting tough for him to defend because of his injury. Jofra Archer had the last laugh. That was a key moment. When you start the day at 58/4 and are looking to win, the wicket of Rishabh Pant was a key moment,” he further added.

However, Murali Kartik also applauded England captain Ben Stokes after their win in the third Test, calling him an ‘X-factor’ player as well. He also credited the all-rounder for taking responsibility and stepping up as a leader as well.

“When he (Stokes) came into this series, he was also injured. It was expected that his workload would also be managed. But if you look at him, he took responsibility and bowled a lot. This shows that he wants to take it upon himself. It shows that he wants to take charge of his captaincy and not leave it to someone else. This is a very big quality. The way he bowled, whenever he has taken the ball he has done well. He got KL Rahul out, he got Bumrah. These moments matter in a tight game,” Murali Kartik concluded.