They just went into a shell: Shastri disappointed with India's 'timid' batting against England in 5th Test

Former Indian head coach Ravi Shastri was disappointed with India's mediocre show in the 2nd innings of the rescheduled Test match against England at Edgbaston. Shastri, who guided India to historic Test series triumphs in Australia, has slammed the 'defensive' and 'timid' batting performance of the Virat Kohli-starrer Team India in the fifth and final Test of the 2021 series. India fumbled in the 2nd innings of the 5th match which paved the way for England to stage an incredible comeback in the Test series decider.

After registering a daunting total of 416 in the 1st innings, Jasprit Bumrah-led Team India only managed to score 245 in their second essay at Edgbaston. Premier batters Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli and Shreyas Iyer recorded forgetful outings in both of their innings against England at Edgbaston. Talking about India's batting performance in the 2nd innings, ex-Indian head coach Shastri opined that the visitors needed to bat two sessions to secure the 5th Test and series.

"I think (it was) disappointing, to say the least, because they could have batted England out of this contest," opined Shastri, who is also part of the Sky Sports commentary panel in England. "They needed to bat two sessions and I thought they were defensive, they were timid today, especially after lunch. Even after they had lost those wickets, they could have taken some chances. Runs were important at that stage of the game and I thought they just went into a shell, lost those wickets too quickly, and gave enough time for England to bat today," the former Indian all-rounder added.

Shastri's remarks had arrived before Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow-inspired England completed its highest run chase in Test history on Tuesday. Riding on Root and Bairstow's match-altering centuries, Ben Stokes-led England defeated India by 7 wickets at Edgbaston. With the impressive win, England also levelled the series 2-2.