Bengaluru [India], Mar. 4 : After helping his side bundle out India for a paltry 189 on the first day of the second Test in Bengaluru, Australian off-spinner Nathan Lyon said that it is a 'special' feat to get career-best figures of eight wickets for 50 runs.
"This is very special, don't get me wrong. I don't think it has hit me because in the last hour I was padded up. I was not watching at all. This is the first time I smiled but it is all part of the game. I am very lucky to be able to take eight wickets, that is for sure, but still there are another ten wickets we need to take as a team," Lyon said in a press conference here.
Still beaming after taking the crucial wicket of Indian skipper Virat Kohli, Lyon noted that the batsman was not one to stay low after a licking, adding that the visitors fully expected him to bounce back.
"We want to compete against the best players in the world and Virat is one of the best batters in the world I have ever come across, so to be able to take his wicket today was exceptional.
But we know this series is a massive series and it is a long series," he said. It was the third batting meltdown in a row for the hosts, who were dismissed for 105 and 107 in the opening test in Pune during a 333-run loss inside three days.
India had posted three consecutive totals of 600-plus before this series. In a 16-over spell either side of lunch, Lyon dismissed Cheteshwar Pujara, India skipper Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane on a pitch that had offered extra bounce and turn for the slow bowlers.
The 29-year-old returned for his second spell after tea and added five more wickets to finish with the best figures by a visiting bowler in India, whose hopes of levelling the series suffered a big setback.
However, Indian opener Lokesh Rahul, who top-scored with 90, said he was confident that Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja would change the tone of the match.
"Cracks are opening up and it is only getting difficult to bat on this wicket. We know Ash (Ashwin) is a top-class bowler and once he gets a couple of wickets and gets into that rhythm, then he is going to run through the Australian batting line-up, which we are very confident of and Jadeja didn't get to ball today but like Lyon he has a lot of rough for left-handlers outside the off-stump.
So, if he can come and bowl consistently on the rough we will get a lot of wickets," said Rahul. Australian openers David Warner and Matt Renshaw added to India's woes by staying unbeaten on 23 and 15 respectively to take their side to 40 without loss at stumps.
Source: ANI
