Who said what - top 5 expert reactions to India's series defeat after AUS vs IND 2025 2nd ODI ft. Irfan Pathan

The Shubman Gill-led India failed to show up in the second ODI against Australia, losing the match by two wickets in Adelaide on Thursday, October 23. With the loss, the Men in Blue also lost the three-match series 0-2.

After losing their 17th consecutive toss, India were asked to bat first in bowling-friendly conditions. The tourists lost big wickets of skipper Shubman Gill (9) and Virat Kohli (0) as Xavier Bartlett struck twice in the same over. Rohit Sharma struggled initially but top-scored with 73 runs off 97 balls with the aid of two sixes and seven boundaries. Vice-captain Shreyas Iyer ably supported him with 61 off 77 deliveries. The duo shared a 118-run stand to help India recover from 17/2.

Axar Patel continued his promising form with the bat, scoring a brisk 44 off 41 balls. The lower middle order collapsed as KL Rahul (11), Washington Sundar (12), and Nitish Kumar Reddy (8) failed to deliver with the bat. However, Harshit Rana (24 off 12) and Arshdeep Singh (13 off 14) stood tall to help the visitors reach 164/9 in their allotted 50 overs.

Adam Zampa starred with the ball for Australia, returning with figures of 4/60, while Xavier Bartlett and Mitchell Starc bagged three and two wickets, respectively.

In response, Australia achieved the target with 22 balls to spare. Harshit and Arshdeep provided early breakthroughs by dismissing skipper Mitchell Marsh (11) and Travis Head (28), but Matthew Short (74) and Matt Renshaw (30) took the game away from India. Later, Cooper Connolly and Mitchell Owen chipped in with 61 (53) and 36 (23). Arshdeep, Harshit, and Washington Sundar took two wickets apiece, while Mohammed Siraj and Axar Patel bagged one each.

The former players criticized India following another ODI series loss in Australia after the 2020/21 tour.

Who said what - top 5 expert reactions to India's series defeat after AUS vs IND 2025 2nd ODI ft. Irfan Pathan

Ravichandran Ashwin

Former cricketer Ravichandran Ashwin sounded baffled by the Indian bowling unit as they failed to take wickets at regular intervals. The cricketer-turned-commentator said that he expected way better from Harshit Rana, who finished with 2/59 in his eight overs. The legendary off-spinner said on his YouTube channel:

“The bowling attack is looking a bit ordinary, to be honest. It does not feel like a wicket will fall, or how are they even going to take a wicket? We need to get bowlers who can actually get you wickets rather than bowlers who might make you runs.”

“Harshit Rana has got something. But I think there is a lot to learn for him, like how to build a spell. Of course, he did well with the bat; he gave India the edge towards the end, that extra burst of runs. Credit to him for improving his batting on a day-to-day basis. But if we talk about bowling, he got Travis Head out, and then Matt Short as well. After six overs, his figures read 2-36. If a bowler has such figures, I am looking at that bowler, and thinking, can he get me 3-56 or 3-60 from 10 overs?” he added.

Kris Srikkanth

Former India cricketer Kris Srikkanth questioned Shubman Gill for bowling only seven overs from Washington Sundar. The World Cup-winning player further questioned all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy’s bowling credentials. He reiterated that Harshit Rana shouldn’t have been part of the playing XI. The 65-year-old said on his YouTube channel:

“They made a lot of tactical errors. Why did Washington Sundar bowl only seven overs in the end? They were struggling against the spinners. It was baffling that they didn't complete his quota of overs. They should have continued bowling Sundar. There, they made a mistake by bringing Harshit Rana back on. On top of that, Nitish Kumar Reddy got hammered in his three overs. He just fed the Australian batters.”

“The biggest reason is we didn't use the spinners properly. There are only two spinners. They should have been rotated properly. When Harshit Rana took the second wicket, they should have bowled Washington Sundar and Axar Patel. The pressure would have built up as the required rate was already just over six,” he added.

Nitish Kumar Reddy, in particular, conceded 24 runs in his three overs. Meanwhile, Washington Sundar returned with figures of 2/37 in his seven overs. Axar Patel finished with 1/52 in his 10 overs.

Zaheer Khan

Former India pacer Zaheer Khan believes that Harshit Rana needs to work on his bowling, while urging him to acquire new skills to stay on top of the batters. The World Cup winner told Cricbuzz:

“That has been evident in the games he has played. But that's something which can be worked on. These are the things the support staff should take note of. These are the things the players themselves must accept they must work on, and the support staff should set a roadmap for them to go in the right direction. But that's what experience is all about.”

“The more games you play and the more discussions you have, if you have the open mind of adding things, which is what those who have played for a long time have done, you should improve. If you keep on doing the same things, you are not going to produce results that consistently. You will be figured out by the batters. They will find a way of putting you under pressure. So, you have to keep adding things to your armoury,” he added.

Irfan Pathan

Former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan felt that the Men in Blue failed to score enough runs on the board, which ultimately led to their loss. The cricketer-turned-commentator reiterated that Kuldeep Yadav’s absence was felt again in the second ODI. The 40-year-old said on his YouTube channel:

“If you had a wrist-spinner in Kuldeep Yadav in the middle overs, it would have been good. I understand the need for batting depth because at least three players are coming on the back of not playing regular cricket, so you don't know their form. So, batting depth is required.”

“If you look at it overall, where did it go wrong? More runs were required. You would have thought the match was close, but Australia were quite comfortable. Cooper Connolly was playing easily, wickets fell, but Australia still won comfortably,” he added.

Aakash Chopra

Former India Test opener Aakash Chopra shared similar sentiments to Irfan Pathan, citing the batting unit and Kuldeep Yadav’s absence as the primary reason behind their loss in the second ODI. The cricketer-turned-analyst said on his YouTube channel:

“In my opinion, batting is the issue. Because if your batting isn’t good, then your composition and combination also change. You don’t get the confidence to drop a batter and play an extra bowler at number eight, because there is a lot of noise about Kuldeep, Kuldeep, Kuldeep. And I do agree, where Zampa takes four, Kuldeep could have taken three, controlling the middle overs and taking wickets.”

“But for all that to happen, there must be confidence in batting. There was no confidence in batting. This is perhaps a lesson for everyone; you cannot walk into a series really cold. As a team, you also have to think about this when organizing these small tours, because before them, you don’t get proper preparation time. We were only talking about two people, Rohit and Kohli. But you should also think about others, like Shreyas Iyer, who is just coming in. These are not the conditions you are used to practicing in, so the task becomes a bit difficult. Eventually, we fail,” he added.

India will now be looking for a consolation victory against Australia in the third ODI, scheduled to be played at the Sydney Cricket Ground on Saturday, October 25.