‘A collective letdown’: India skipper Rohit Sharma laments series loss to New Zealand

New Delhi: In a surprising turn of events, the Indian cricket team has suffered a rare defeat in a Test series at home for the first time since 2012. The team faced back-to-back losses against New Zealand, losing both Test matches. The latest defeat came in the Pune Test match, where India was beaten by New Zealand (IND vs NZ, 2nd Test) by a margin of 113 runs. This marks India's second consecutive loss in Test matches, raising concerns among fans and critics alike.

The Indian captain lamented the lack of runs put on the board, he believes the loss in Pune and during the ongoing series is a collective failure.

“It’s a collective failure. I’m not somebody who would blame just the batters or the bowlers,” Rohit said in the post-match presentation.

Talking about the match, after losing the toss and being put to bowl first, The Rohit Sharma-led side was restricted to a mere 156 runs in response to New Zealand’s 259. Carrying a 103-run lead, New Zealand put together 255 runs in the second innings and were able to stop India for 245 on Day 3.

“Didn’t think we batted well enough to get runs on the board. You’ve got to pick 20 wickets to win, yes, but batters have to put runs on the board. Was a great fightback to restrict them to 250-odd but we knew it was going to be challenging,” Rohit said.

“When they started off, they were 200/3 and for us to come back and get them bowled out for 259 was a great effort. Wasn’t a pitch where a lot was happening. We just didn’t bat well enough,” he added.

When the Indian skipper was asked on his expectations were from the remaining Test in the series before India tours Australia for a five Test, Rohit Sharma said, “We want to show up well at Wankhede (Stadium) and try and win that Test. We will come out with better intent, better ideas and better methods.”