In what will go down as one of India’s worst home campaigns, New Zealand thoroughly outclassed the hosts to clinch a historic Test series victory in Pune. Yet, in the aftermath of this crushing defeat, Indian captain Rohit Sharma chose reflection over reaction. He indicated that there will be no overreaction to this crushing loss that has ended India’s 12-year streak of dominance at home.
Facing a packed press conference after New Zealand’s maiden Test series win in India, Rohit cut a figure of a composed leader rather than defeated despair. The usually animated captain, while visibly hurt by the loss, maintained a balanced stance and said that the team would be discussing where the players went wrong and what to do differently come the third Test match in Mumbai.
No overreaction, says Rohit Sharma after IND vs NZ 2nd Test
“It happens sometimes that you can’t do what you plan,” Rohit offered, his voice carrying the weight of the surprising defeat that India faced. The Indian skipper defended his batting unit, which crumbled against Mitchell Santner’s spin masterclass. Instead, he recalled that these were the same set of batters who decimated England 4-1 and whitewashed Bangladesh as recently as in earlier this month. “Don’t want to do much post-mortem. Same batters have won us the previous series in the past. We just need to think what we can do differently.” His emphasis on avoiding knee-jerk reactions stood out, particularly when many voices are already calling for glaring issues with the batting unit.
The hosts’ batting performance was nothing short of abysmal. It is not in this Test but in the entire series. When the pitch had pace and bounce, India rattled for 46 in Bengaluru. The Pune pitch, absolutely opposite, offered turn, and India crumbled again. Despite a promising start with Yashasvi Jaiswal’s early aggression, what followed was a procession of batters looking clueless against the turning ball. The middle order’s defensive approach backfired spectacularly, with Virat Kohli falling to a straight delivery, Rishabh Pant running himself out for a duck, and Sarfaraz Khan looking completely at sea against Santner’s variations.
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Rohit not thinking about WTC right now
When pressed about India’s World Test Championship prospects following this setback, Rohit remained reluctant to look too far ahead. “It’s too early to think about WTC. I am hurting because we lost the game,” he admitted, acknowledging what was evident to all who watched India’s batting capitulate.
Perhaps most telling was his admission of “collective failure.”. “It’s a collective failure. If you lose a Test match, it’s about the entire unit that has to take the blame. I am not going to overreact,” he insisted, even as India’s batting average in this series plumbed new depths. “You need to have a quiet chat about what they need to do. I am going to support the players who are going to play in Australia for the first time. Keep it calm and make them feel they belong here.”
The defeat marks not just the end of India’s dominant home run but also raises serious questions about their ability to handle quality spin bowling—ironically, on pitches they themselves prepared.
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