India lost a crucial match against Australia in the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 (BGT). In the Melbourne Cricket Ground, the Indian team lost the match against the Kangaroos by 184 runs. On the fifth Day of the Test, India fell short of chasing the 340-run target. India’s poor batting was one of the top reasons for the loss. Other than Yashasvi Jaiswal, who played an 84-run knock, none of the players actually shone for India including Virat Kohli and captain Rohit Sharma. India’s star batter Virat Kohli went out for five runs and again, Rohit Sharma couldn’t even score the runs in the double digits in the series. India’s Ex-coach, Ravi Shastri, in whose leadership as a coach, India won the last two BGT’s in Australia, went furious after the awful performances from the senior players. Speaking to Star Sports, Ravi Shastri and Irfan Pathan shared his thoughts on the match.
Virat must be feeling disappointed – Ravi Shastri
Ravi Shastri explained his thoughts on how Virat Kohli must be feeling, emphasising that he would be disappointed with himself. “Virat batted well in the first innings. He’ll be disappointed in the way he’s getting out because there’s a similarity with the driving outside the off-stump. He could leave those deliveries. Mitchell Starc set Virat Kohli up beautifully. An over before that, there were some good leaves from Virat, but they were challenging the off stump. And here, he floated one outside, tempting Virat—should I leave it, should I play—last over before lunch. Virat would have been very disappointed.” he said.
Team would be set without Rohit, says Pathan
India’s captain Rohit Sharma has just managed to scored 31 runs in the last six innings he has played for India in the BGT this year. Reflecting to his current form, India’s great, Irfan Pathan said, “A player who has made about 20,000 runs—yet the way Rohit is struggling now, it seems his form is not supporting him at all. What’s happening now is that he is the captain, so he is playing. If he were not the captain, he might not be playing right now. You would have had a set team. K.L. Rahul would have been playing at the top. Jaiswal would have been there. Shubman Gill would have been there. If we talk about reality, considering how he is struggling with the bat, there might not have been a place for him in the playing XI. But because he is the captain, and you want to win the next match to draw the series, he stays in the team.”
Rishabh Pant’s wicket costed the match
Shastri believes that Rishabh Pant’s wicket sealed the fate of the result. “I think the turning point was the wicket of Rishabh Pant. They knew they couldn’t win the game by lunchtime once they lost three wickets. The only chance you have of winning is if there’s a platform set, exactly what Rohit said. And then, when Rishabh Pant got out after tea, that lifted the Australians. That was the opening they were looking for, and they made sure to capitalise on it.” He stated.
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