Team India captain Rohit Sharma reacted candidly to India’s shocking performance, being bowled out for a mere 46 runs against New Zealand during a crucial Test match. In his post-match press conference, Sharma admitted that the team had misjudged the pitch and made several strategic errors that cost them dearly.
Sharma revealed that while they had predicted the pitch would be challenging, they failed to fully understand its complexities. “I misread the conditions,” said Rohit, “We anticipated the pitch to be tricky, but I misjudged how damp it was after three days of covers due to the humid weather.” This resulted in India’s decision to bat first after winning the toss, a move that backfired as the New Zealand bowlers capitalized on the conditions.
Rohit also shared the reasoning behind sending Virat Kohli one down, explaining that KL Rahul preferred not to alter his batting position, which led to Kohli stepping in. The captain, however, refused to blame individual players, stating that the team, as a whole, underperformed. “It wasn’t a matter of potential. We just failed to execute our plans on this challenging surface.”
New Zealand’s bowlers, led by Tim Southee and Matt Henry, exploited the pitch to perfection. With sharp movement and tight lines, they forced five Indian batters to get out without scoring. Rishabh Pant, who top-scored with 20 runs, was the only Indian batter to show some resistance, but it wasn’t enough to recover from the collapse.
Sharma admitted that it was a mistake to opt for batting first, but he defended the thought process behind it. “We wanted to take advantage of the early morning moisture, but clearly, we failed to handle the situation as we had planned.” Despite these setbacks, Rohit addressed the media with a positive outlook, recognizing the need to bounce back quickly.
At the close of Day 2, New Zealand had already built a commanding lead, scoring 180 runs for the loss of 3 wickets in 50 overs, leading by 134 runs. Team India now faces an uphill battle as they regroup and try to salvage the match.
The Indian captain concluded by praising the efforts of the New Zealand bowlers, acknowledging their ability to exploit the conditions far better than India had anticipated. “We have to learn from this, make better decisions moving forward, and ensure we don’t repeat such mistakes.”
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