India suffer first home Test series defeat since 2012-13 as New Zealand script history in Pune
Team India suffered a 113-run defeat in Pune in the second Test of their ongoing three-match home series against New Zealand on Saturday, October 26. With back-to-back victories, the Blackcaps have claimed an unassailable 2-0 lead in the rubber.
This is the Men in Blue's first Test series defeat at home since 2012-13. India enjoyed an imperious run on home soil in the format for over a decade. Their last home Test series defeat came against England in 2012-13, following which, they won 18 series on the trot.
New Zealand's spirited performance in the ongoing series ended India's imperious run. The visitors secured a comprehensive eight-wicket victory in the Test series opener in Bengaluru and followed it up with another impressive show in the subsequent fixture in Pune.
It is worth mentioning that ahead of the ongoing series, New Zealand hadn't won a Test on Indian soil since 1988. The Tom Latham side scripted history with their consecutive wins, clinching their maiden Test series victory in India.
After winning the toss and electing to bat first, New Zealand registered a decent 259-run total, courtesy of Devon Conway (76) and Rachin Ravindra's (65) half-centuries. Washington Sundar was the pick of the bowlers in the essay, bagging a career-best seven-wicket haul.
India's batting let them down, getting bundled out for just 156. Mitchell Santner ran through the home team's long batting lineup, picking up seven wickets. The Kiwis were bowled out for 255 in the subsequent essay, posting a 359-run target.
Rohit Sharma and company were all out for 245 on Day 3, with opener Yashasvi Jaiswal's 77-run knock being the sole saving grace. Santner shone with the ball in the final innings as well, claiming six wickets.
"It's not what we expected" - Rohit Sharma on India's 113-run loss in Pune Test
Speaking at the post-match presentation of the Pune Test, Indian skipper Rohit Sharma admitted that their batting let them down in the contest. He pointed out that while the bowlers managed to pick up 20 wickets, their batters failed to get enough runs on the board.
Sharma opined that they would have been in the game had they got some more runs in their first innings. He hoped to finish the series with a consolation win in the remaining encounter in Mumbai.
The 37-year-old said:
"Disappointing. It's not what we expected. But we have to give credit to NZ. They played better than us. They threw certain challenges at us. We failed to respond to challenges. I don't think we batted well enough. Of course, you need 20 wickets to win Tests but we didn't put enough runs on the board. 100 runs behind, we were chasing the game. Continuous pressure from both sides meant we couldn't respond to the challenges. From 200/3, for us to come back to bowl them out for 259 was great from us. It was a pitch where not much was happening, we just didn't bat well enough."
"Things would've been slightly different had we got a bit closer in the first innings. We want to show up well on Wankhede and win that Test. It's about not focusing too far ahead. It's a collective failure. I am not someone who'd blame the batter or bowlers. We'll come out with a better intent, better ideas and better mindset," he added.
The third and final Test of the series will be played at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai from Friday, November 1.