India, chasing a target of 340, adopted a cautious approach during their innings. Australia’s bowlers maintained consistent pressure with high-quality deliveries, forcing Rohit Sharma and Yashasvi Jaiswal to restrain their attacking instincts. This allowed Australia to establish a dominant rhythm.
Speaking exclusively on Star Sports, former Indian head coach Ravi Shastri shared his thoughts on Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma’s performances in the ongoing series.
“Virat batted well in the first innings. He’ll be disappointed with the way he’s getting out because there’s a pattern—driving outside the off stump. He could leave those deliveries. As far as Rohit Sharma goes, at times we’ve seen in the series that his front foot isn’t really moving towards the ball as much as it should. There’s a trigger movement, but then the leg stays planted. 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’—just before lunch. Virat would have been very disappointed,” Shastri said.
Rohit Sharma’s attempt at an aggressive shot led to his dismissal. Aiming to whip a Pat Cummins delivery through the leg side, he edged the ball to gully, departing for nine runs off 40 balls.
On the final ball of the same over, KL Rahul edged a back-of-a-length delivery from Cummins to second slip and was dismissed for a five-ball duck.
Just before lunch, Kohli attempted an expansive drive off Mitchell Starc’s full-length delivery and was caught at first slip for five off 29 balls.
Shastri then expressed his opinion on Rishabh Pant, saying, “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 in the press conference. 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 concluded.
Rishabh Pant and Yashasvi Jaiswal forged an 88-run partnership for the fourth wicket. Pant contributed 30 runs from 104 balls, while Jaiswal’s crucial innings yielded 84 runs. Their partnership provided a glimmer of hope for India in their challenging chase.
With India seemingly aiming for a draw, Pant’s aggressive approach led to his dismissal. Attempting a powerful shot off Travis Head’s bowling, he was caught at long-on, handing Australia a crucial breakthrough at 121-4.
Following Pant’s dismissal, India lost three wickets in quick succession for just nine runs. Scott Boland dismissed Ravindra Jadeja, caught behind, and Nitish Kumar Reddy edged a Nathan Lyon delivery to slip.
Yashasvi Jaiswal, who had anchored the Indian innings, eventually fell for 84, dismissed by Pat Cummins. His patient knock provided resistance but ultimately couldn’t prevent India’s collapse.
Scott Boland further deepened India’s woes by dismissing Akash Deep and later Jasprit Bumrah. Mohammed Siraj was trapped lbw by Nathan Lyon, while Washington Sundar remained unbeaten at the other end.
Australia secured a comprehensive 184-run victory in the Boxing Day Test.
