ENG vs IND 2025: 'India didn't bat positively in fourth innings' - Mohammad Azharuddin slams batters after Lord's defeat

Mohammad Azharuddin lashed out at the Indian batters after Shubman Gill's men lost the third Test by 22 runs against England at the iconic Lord's Cricket Ground.

Chasing a 193-run target in the fourth innings, none of the top-order batters apart from KL Rahul managed to show resiliance of note. In the last session on Day 4, India lost the wickets of Yashasvi Jaiswal, Karun Nair, and Shubman, apart from nightwatchman Akash Deep. The tourists didn't have the kind of partnerships they would have wanted, and Shubman also mentioned the same after the encounter.

"I don't think we batted well. Don't think we batted positively in the second innings. If you see, we lost 4 wickets at the end of the day. And then coming into the fifth day, it was always going to be tough, not easy. We needed some good partnerships, as they always say. You can always say anybody can be wise after the event," Azharuddin was quoted as saying by NDTV Sports.

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The former India captain also lauded the tailenders for their courageous display on Day 5. Ravindra Jadeja scored an unbeaten half-century, but he lost partners from the other end. Azharuddin feels that Jadeja could have tried to attack England spinners Shoaib Bashir and Joe Root a bit more. He also mentioned that the Indian batters allowed England to dominate proceedings with the ball.

“I must admit and congratulate the tailenders for really putting up that brave front. Ravindra Jadeja really batted well. But I thought that maybe when Root and Bashir were bowling, he could have gone after them in those 4-5 overs. If he had gotten another 15-20 runs, the job would have been much easier. We cannot complain about his batting. The way he batted, stood there like a rock and at the end of the day, the result wasn't much forthcoming for the Indian team. We faltered in the second innings. Rahul batted well too. But at some point, we allowed good bowlers to dominate,” he added.