New Delhi: Rohit Sharma is in the line of fire after India’s 8-wicket defeat against New Zealand in the 1st Test in Bengaluru, and rightfully so as he made some awful tactical blunders that contributed to India’s loss. From failing to read the pitch and conditions right to picking the wrong XI and not making the right bowling changes at crucial junctures, Rohit got it all wrong in the Test match.
New Zealand, who headed into the series on the back of a 2-0 drubbing at the hands of Sri Lanka, handed India a reality check as they recorded their first Test victory on Indian soil in 36 years. New Zealand last won a Test match in India in November 1988, however, they managed to end India’s unbeaten streak in Bengaluru on Sunday.
While it all went wrong for India with the bat in their first innings after the hosts were bundled out for 46 runs, the bowling effort was also ordinary. India were bowled out for their lowest total at home in Tests in their first innings but the bowlers had a chance to pull things back. However, they failed to do so as the Kiwi batters made merry to post 402 runs on the board in their first innings.
Sarfaraz Khan and Rishabh Pant did ignite hope of an unlikely India comeback with their terrific batting in India’s second innings but their efforts were not enough as the hosts eventually succumbed to a woeful defeat. India will have a lot to ponder before they take the field for the 2nd Test in Pune amid questions over the team’s combination.
Mohammed Siraj should make way for Akash Deep
The decision to pick Siraj as the second pacer in the Bengaluru Test backfired spectacularly for Rohit and the Indian team management as the pacer struggled to make an impact. Despite getting favourable conditions, Siraj was poor with his variations and failed to exploit the movement on offer. His struggles were clearly evident during New Zealand’s second innings on Day 5 when he failed to provide any support whatsoever to Jasprit Bumrah from the other end.
Bumrah welcomed New Zealand with a hostile spell with the new ball on Day 5 but failed to find any support from Siraj, who couldn’t trouble the Kiwi batters at all. The decision to pick Siraj over Akash Deep was a baffling one, to say the least considering the kind of form the Bengal pacer was in.
Akash Deep, who came off a brilliant show in the domestic circuit, performed well in the two-match series against Bangladesh last month where he picked up 5 wickets and looked in great rhythm as he consistently kept troubling the Indian batters. However, he was dropped inexplicably against New Zealand in Bengaluru with Siraj getting preferred over him.
Siraj’s numbers have been far from convincing in home Tests with the pacer managing only 19 wickets in 13 matches at an average of 38.95 in India. In 8 Test matches in 2024 so far, Siraj has only 19 wickets to his name at an average of over 29. The pacer has been struggling for quite some time now and should get pipped by Akash Deep in the 2nd Test in Pune if India decide to go with 2 pacers once again.
Crucial for India to bounce back
India will be looking to bounce back to winning ways in the 2nd Test in Pune which gets underway on Thursday, October 24. It will be crucial for the hosts to level the series 1-1 as another defeat or a draw will further hurt their chances of qualifying for the World Test Championship (WTC) 2023-25 final.
India are currently on top of the WTC points table with a win percentage of 68.06, however, they need to win at least 4 of their remaining 7 Tests in the ongoing cycle to be assured of a spot in their third straight final.
If India fail to beat New Zealand in the 2nd Test in Pune, they will have a massive task at their hands of winning 4 of their last 6 Test matches, including 5 Tests against Australia in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 later this year. Winning three Tests in Australia will be far from easy thus for India will have to win both the remaining Tests aganst New Zeaalnd in the ongoing series to inch closer to a spot in the WTC final.
