'Three very loose shots' - Ravi Shastri criticises Rohit, Kohli, and Pant's second-innings dismissals at MCG

The experienced trio of Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and Rishabh Pant got out while playing some loose shots in the second innings of the Boxing Day Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG). This irked former India head coach Ravi Shastri as the Asian giants lost the Test match by 184 runs.

Rohit tried to play a flick off Pat Cummins but the ball went off the leading edge to Mitchell Marsh, who showed sharp reflexes to take a brilliant catch at gully. Meanwhile, Kohli's struggles with deliveries outside the off-stump continued as he tried to play a loose drive away from his body and was caught by Usman Khawaja at first slip. Rishabh Pant got out at a crucial moment in the match when he tried to hit a long hop from part-timer Travis Head for a maximum.

"There will be a few of other second-innings dismissals that will be scrutinized in India as well, involving two senior players and a youngster. Three very loose shots. It doesn’t help when one of it involved the captain who is struggling. Also doesn’t help when Cummins raises his game to a scale of 8 or 9 when up against his counterpart, who is at the opposite end of the scale," Shastri said via Indian Express.

Rohit has only scored 31 runs from five innings so far on the tour of Australia. Meanwhile, Kohli and Pant have fared better. The former India skipper has aggregated 167 runs from seven innings at an average of 27.83. On the other hand, Pant has made 154 runs in seven innings at an average of 22.

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Rohit's opposite number, Cummins, picked up six wickets and scored 90 runs in the fourth Test in Melbourne and won the Player of the Match award. After losing the first Test in Perth, the hosts have bounced back strongly to take a 2-1 lead in the five-match series. The final Test will take place at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG), starting on Friday, January 3.