India Faces Historic Test Series Whitewash Against New Zealand
In a surprising turn of events, India’s cricket team, led by Rohit Sharma, faced a historic 3-0 Test series whitewash against New Zealand on home soil. This defeat has raised concerns about India’s batting performance, especially against overseas spinners.
Sachin Tendulkar Calls for Introspection
Cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar has suggested that India needs to introspect after this unexpected loss. The series highlighted the Indian batters’ vulnerability against spin bowlers like Ajaz Patel, Mitchell Santner, and Glenn Phillips.
Decline in Batting Performance
India’s batting average against spinners dropped significantly in 2024. Earlier in the year, India had a successful 4-1 Test series win against England, with a batting average of nearly 40 against spinners. However, against New Zealand, the average fell to 24.4, with 37 wickets lost to spinners in three Tests.
Impact on World Test Championship
The series loss has complicated India’s path to the World Test Championship (WTC) final. Previously leading the WTC points table, India has now dropped to second place with a point percentage of 58.33%. To secure a spot in the WTC final, India must win four out of five matches in the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia.
Doubts Revealed
Test series whitewash -: A ‘whitewash’ in cricket means losing all the matches in a series. Here, India lost all three Test matches against New Zealand.
Rohit Sharma -: Rohit Sharma is a famous Indian cricketer and the captain of the Indian cricket team in this series.
Sachin Tendulkar -: Sachin Tendulkar is a legendary Indian cricketer, often considered one of the greatest batsmen in the history of cricket.
World Test Championship -: The World Test Championship (WTC) is a tournament organized by the International Cricket Council (ICC) to determine the best Test cricket team in the world.
Border-Gavaskar Trophy -: The Border-Gavaskar Trophy is a Test cricket series played between India and Australia. It is named after two famous cricketers, Allan Border from Australia and Sunil Gavaskar from India.
