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India’s abject surrender against New Zealand saw them losing 0-3 in a three-Test series at home for the first time as the famed batting line-up led by Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli fell like a pack of cards on a turning Wankhede Stadium pitch in the third Test.
Chasing 147 to win, India lost by 25 runs inside three days despite a counter-attacking 64 by wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant.
Having laid out a red-soil turner, the hosts fell into their own trap as the left-arm spinner Ajaz Patel took six wickets and was ably supported by Glenn Phillips, who took three wickets with his part-time off-spin.
The dismal show extended the string of low scores by Rohit and Kohli, who ended up scoring 91 and 93 runs, respectively, in six innings across three Tests.
The embarrassing series defeat has also jeopardized India’s chances of finishing in the top two of the World Test Championship table for a place in the final, after losing their top spot to Australia.
India’s hopes now hinge on their last five Tests of this WTC cycle, which will be part of the Border Gavaskar Trophy in Australia.
The surrender by Indian batters and the stiff challenge coming up in Australia made Indian fans miss Test specialist Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane, both of who played crucial roles in India’s historic series wins in Australia on the last two tours Down Under.
Take a look at how the fans wished for Pujara and Rahane to be India’s Test squad for Australia, which, however, has already been announced.
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