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We should have drawn the series: Kumble

Principal Correspondent

— Photo: G.P. Sampath Kumar

WELCOME BACK: Anil Kumble greeted by wife Chethana on his arrival at the Bangalore Airport on Wednesday.

Bangalore: Anil Kumble said that a drawn Test series against Australia would have been a fair result. The Indian Test skipper spoke to the media on arrival at the Bangalore HAL Airport here late on Wednesday night.

“We set out to win the series when we went there but we lost in Melbourne and that set us back. But having said that I think we did well to come back and do well. Ideally we should have drawn the series but I am happy with the way we played and we played good cricket all through the series,” Kumble said.

Extra practice games

In retrospect, Kumble said that the team would have benefited with some extra practice games prior to the first Test at Melbourne. “There was not much preparation before the Melbourne Test but after that I think we coped well. Yes, more practice (games) before that first Test would have certainly helped but we had to give our best in the given circumstances and I think we did well to pick ourselves up after Melbourne,” Kumble said.

He remained guarded in his remarks when asked about Aussie skipper Ricky Ponting’s statement that India would have a bigger challenge in the coming months while coping with the transition period when top players quit. “That’s something we will think about later and I think it is still early to talk about it. But yes I am confident about the younger players coping with it,” Kumble said.

Tough challenge

Queried on whether it was emotionally draining to be in control both on and off the field in the context of the various controversies that dogged the series, Kumble admitted, “Yes, it was tough but one had to cope with it. It was a challenge.”

Besides Kumble, Rahul Dravid along with wife Vijeta and son Samit also arrived from Australia.

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