India Sports Tribune

INDORE, INDIA: India’s disdainful showing while losing the third ODI of the ongoing series against New Zealand by 41 runs shows signs of a side going through a rut. With this defeat, the Indians surrendered the series 1-2 to the Kiwis, losing a bilateral ODI series to them for the first time ever.

The Men in Blue’s batting unit, save a few consistent performers, put up a sorry display, and the Kiwis, despite their relative inexperience of playing in the subcontinent, proved that the whole is always greater than the sum of its parts. India, despite winning the first game in Baroda, lost in Rajkot and Indore.

The New Zealand side, which pocketed this series, was arguably the least experienced to tour this country, and that they still went on to embarrass the hosts speaks a lot about their cohesive training, preparation and adaptability. India, in response, faltered at the first sign of trouble and had no one to bail them out.

Virat Kohli’s performances (93, 23 and 124) seemed to gloss over the inconsistent showing of his fellow batters, with only wicketkeeper KL Rahul showing signs of resistance with an unbeaten 112, albeit for a losing cause, in Rajkot. Skipper Shubman Gill too scored two half-centuries, but could not convert his start in Indore.

Among the failures were former captain Rohit Sharma and his Bombay teammate Shreyas Iyer. The former totalled just 61 runs across three innings, while Iyer’s best came in Baroda with 49, following it up with scores of 8 and 3. Called back into the side after some time away nursing an injury, Iyer failed to give the selectors any credible reason to hold on to him.

India’s bowling unit appeared toothless

India’s bowling unit seemed inexperienced and out of its depth right from the start, with Hyderabad’s Mohammed Siraj tasked with the gigantic responsibility of leading it alongside coach Gautam Gambhir’s poster boy, Harshit Rana. The former picked up three wickets while the latter pocketed six, albeit at a high economy rate.

Rana’s batting (29, 2 and 52) was arguably better than his bowling in this series, and for someone who has played just 14 first-class games, he stood up to prove his detractors wrong, if only from the other weapon in his hand. His bowling, however, lacked consistency, with him conceding 201 runs in this series.

In Indore, he was tasked with bowling at the death, and he failed in spectacular measure, doling up half-volleys, full-tosses and half-trackers for New Zealand captain Michael Bracewell to capitalise on. Rana imploded under pressure and proved that his inexperience would always end up becoming his undoing.

Spinners Kuldeep Yadav and Ravindra Jadeja’s dismal performances did not help India’s cause at all, with the former taking just three wickets across the series, and the latter none at all. With Jadeja’s expiry date close by (he is 37), the selectors will do well to ask him to honourably bow out and bring Axar Patel back into the fold in this format.

New Zealand can never be taken for granted

The Kiwis, for their part, showed why they can never be taken for granted, even if there appeared to be no big names on paper. Veteran Daryl Mitchell (84, 131*, 137) scored two consecutive centuries in Rajkot and Indore, while Glenn Phillips supported him nicely in the latter. Will Young and Henry Nicholls also added oomph to their batting.

In their bowling department, the Kiwis had seamers Kristian Clarke and Kyle Jamieson to thank, as the duo shared 13 Indian wickets between them out of the 30 to fall in the series. Zakary Foulkes and Jayden Lennox too shared 7 wickets between themselves, with the latter giving away just 84 runs in the series.

With the ODI World Cup just a year away, India have to do a lot of spring cleaning, especially in their batting department, and let hangers-on and deadwood who shall have no part to play in the quadrennial tournament drift away. In the bowling department, Jasprit Bumrah’s absence has laid the hosts’ cupboard bare, and the lack of teeth in their spin unit is deeply concerning.

Coach Gambhir’s role too needs to be analysed, just as it should have been after India’s disheartening 0-2 loss to South Africa in a Test series last year. India cannot afford to be lax in their self-analysis and self-reflection, and they will be the first to admit that there was no chance that they should have been second-best to such an inexperienced New Zealand side.

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