'They showed it to the dressing room' - Sourav Ganguly directs jibe at Indian batters after lower-order's fightback

Australia are in a commanding position in the ongoing World Test Championship Final against India after making light work of the Indian top order. Following Ajinkya Rahane and Shardul Thakur's fighting partnership in the morning session of the third day, former Indian skipper Sourav Ganguly took a jibe at the Indian top-order batters.

After conceding a massive first innings total, team India were in a precarious position on the second day after an underwhelming performance by a star-studded Indian batting order. While Virat Kohli was dismissed by a peach of a delivery, Shubman Gill, Rohit Sharma and Cheteshwar Pujara won't look back at their dismissals too fondly.

Despite a no-show from the top-order batters, India showed tremendous fight in the second innings, thanks to a defiant seventh wicket stand between Ajinkya Rahane and Shardul Thakur. Former Indian skipper Sourav Ganguly commended the duo for their stubborn partnership, taking a jibe at the top-order batters.

"They showed it to the dressing room that if you apply and have a little bit of luck then you will be able to score runs on this wicket. Credit to Rahane, he was magnificent. Shardul got battered and bruised early on but he hung in there. He has batted well in the past in England and Australia. It's a good fightback from India. This is a message to the top order," the former Indian skipper said in the post-lunch show on Star Sports.

Shardul Thakur adds valuable runs with the Indian tail

Although Shardul Thakur lived a charmed life at the crease, the Indian all-rounder joined an elite club of batters, smashing a third half-century in as many innings at The Oval. His 109-run stand with Ajinkya Rahane, who missed out on a valiant century by just 11 runs, helped India avoid the follow-on.