During the Boxing Day Test match between India and South Africa, former India head coach Ravi Shastri voiced his dissatisfaction with Rohit Sharma’s captaincy, particularly in the post-lunch session on Day 2.
Despite a balanced situation with South Africa at 49/1 after India’s first-innings score of 245, Shastri questioned Sharma’s tactical choices.
Shastri criticized Sharma’s decision to start the session with Shardul Thakur and debutant Prasidh Krishna instead of the more experienced Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj, given favorable overhead conditions. This unconventional move led to Dean Elgar and Tony de Zorzi capitalizing on loose deliveries, putting India on the defensive.
Shastri, reflecting on coaching discussions, highlighted the usual preference for the top two bowlers to commence the session, considering it a significant error.
“In any side, Shardul and Prasidh would be the last to kick off the session after lunch. We discussed this many times during my coaching days, and usually, we opted for the top two bowlers to begin the session. Massive mistake. It allowed them to get off the hook in that session of play,” Shastri said during commentary.
The delay in introducing Bumrah and Siraj allowed South Africa to surge to 91/1, but Bumrah’s subsequent entry proved pivotal, stemming the run flow and dismissing de Zorzi for 28. Another breakthrough followed as Keegan Peetersen fell to Siraj.
Shastri contended that starting with Bumrah or Siraj could have resulted in more wickets for India, preventing the leakage of runs and shifting the momentum back in their favor.
