New Delhi: Legendary India batter Sachin Tendulkar has called for introspection after the hosts’ suffered a 0-3 Test series defeat at the hands of New Zealand after losing the third game at the Wankhede Stadium by 25 runs.
As a result of the loss in Mumbai, Rohit Sharma-led India also lost their top spot in the World Test Championship standings and dropped to second place, behind new table-toppers Australia.
“Losing 3-0 at home is a tough pill to swallow, and it calls for introspection. Was it lack of preparation, was it poor shot selection, or was it lack of match practice? @ShubmanGill showed resilience in the first innings, and @RishabhPant17 was brilliant in both innings— his footwork made a challenging surface look like a different one altogether.”
“He was simply superb. Full credit to New Zealand for their consistent performance throughout the series. Winning 3-0 in India is as good a result as it can get,” wrote Tendulkar on X.
The defeat to New Zealand marked the first time India suffered a clean sweep in a Test series at home since South Africa's 2-0 win in 1999/2000. It’s also the first-ever 3-0 clean sweep defeat for India at home in a three-match series and beyond.
What also became a huge factor in India’s series loss was 37 of the 57 wickets they lost to New Zealand bowlers were to the spinners, something which got the hosts’ criticism from former opener Virender Sehwag.
“While as supporters it’s imperative to support the team but this has been a terrible performance from our team. The skill to play spin certainly needs an upgrade and certain experimentations are good for the shorter format but in Test cricket doing some needless experimentations just for the sake of it was indeed poor,” said Sehwag.
If India are to make it to their third straight World Test Championship final, they will need at least four wins in Australia. They will also have to be dependent on results from other series going in their favour to enter the WTC final, to be held at Lord’s next year.
