"India were very off" - Former RCB cricketer's brutal statement after Men in Blue's loss in AUS vs IND 2025 2nd T20I

Former Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) cricketer Varun Aaron has criticized India's performance in the second T20I against Australia. He noted that the visitors were far from their best in both the batting and bowling departments.

Australia beat India by four wickets in the second T20I of the five-match series in Melbourne on Friday, October 31. The hosts bowled the Men in Blue out for 125 after asking them to bat first and achieved the below-par target with 40 deliveries to spare.

During an interaction on the Star Sports show 'Follow the Blues,' Aaron was asked about his thoughts on Suryakumar Yadav and company's loss in the second T20I.

"India were very off, first of all, with the amount of runs they put on the board. They should have scored at least 30 to 40 runs more in these conditions. I think they pulled the trigger and then they just couldn't stop going after that. Then, with the new ball, they could have been slightly better," he responded.

The recently appointed SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) bowling coach opined that Jasprit Bumrah erred in changing his angle of attack with the new ball and that Harshit Rana bowled a little too short.

"I thought Bumrah started off really well, with over the wicket. Then we went around. That changed plans. Harshit was a bit too short. In these conditions, you can sometimes get carried away with pace and bounce, but you have to put it in the right areas. Josh Hazlewood is the best example of this," Aaron observed.

Jasprit Bumrah registered figures of 2/26 in four overs, but went wicketless in his three overs with the new ball. Harshit Rana was taken to the cleaners, failing to pick up a wicket and conceding 27 runs in two overs.

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"You have got to find a way of coming back" - Varun Aaron on India's batting collapse in AUS vs IND 2025 2nd T20I

India suffered a top-order collapse in the second T20I against Australia. [P/C: Getty]

In the same interaction, Varun Aaron was asked about his thoughts on India's top-order collapse.

"You can lose a few wickets, especially when Josh Hazlewood is bowling against you. He is always pitching it in the right areas. It's doing so much. He also has a really fast bouncer. It hit Shubman Gill on his head. However, you have got to find a way of coming back," he replied.

While praising Abhishek Sharma for playing a well-planned knock, the cricketer-turned-commentator noted that the other batters should have followed the opener's example.

"Abhishek Sharma did that really well. He made sure that none of the bowlers, even in these conditions, could bowl where they wanted to. He kept using his feet and he didn't take too many high-risk shots. I think the Indian batsmen should have battled the hatches and taken it a little deep, kept some wickets in hand, and then tried to go big," Aaron observed.

Abhishek Sharma smashed 68 runs off 37 deliveries in the second T20I against Australia, a knock studded with eight fours and two sixes. Harshit Rana (35 off 33) was the only other Indian player to score more than seven runs.

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Edited by Kartik Iyer