IND vs NZ: India captain Rohit says batters failed to respond but terms Test loss as “collective failure”

Despite Washington Sundar claiming a seven-for, New Zealand went on to score 259 in the first innings, whereas, the Indian batters failed to show resilience.

New Zealand team captain Tom Lantham and Indian team captain Rohit Sharma (R) greet each other after the 2nd test match at the Maharashtra Cricket Association ( MCA ) stadium in Pune. | Photo Credit: The Hindu/K BHAGYA PRAKSH

After a batting collapse in both innings resulted in India’s defeat in the second Test against New Zealand, captain Rohit Sharma admitted that playing on a turning track, the batters failed to respond to the challenge.

India was bundled out for 156 in the first innings and conceded a 100-plus run lead, which eventually turned the game in New Zealand’s way. “I don’t think we batted well enough to get runs on the board. You have got to pick 20 wickets to win, yes, but batters have to put runs on the board. The batters do understand that they failed to respond to the challenge of playing on whatever pitch,” Rohit said on Saturday.

Despite Washington Sundar claiming a seven-for, New Zealand went on to score 259 in the first innings, whereas, the Indian batters failed to show resilience.

“We just didn’t play well enough to get closer to that first innings score of theirs, and then obviously with 100 runs behind, we always knew that it was going to be challenging whatever score we have to get because as the game went on, the pitch started behaving slightly differently,” the Indian captain said.

“It was a great fightback to restrict them to 250-odd (in the first innings), but we knew it was going to be challenging. It wasn’t a pitch where a lot was happening. Things would’ve been slightly different had we got a bit closer in the first innings,” he added.

However, instead of putting fingers at a particular area, Rohit said that it was a collective failure. “We lost the series, that is hurting clearly. There are things that we need to do as a unit. Not just the batters but also the bowlers. It’s a collective failure from the bowlers and the batters. If you lose a Test match, it is not just because of one particular thing. It is just the entire unit collectively failing. When you win a Test match, everyone deserves that credit. If you lose a test match, it’s the same way,” the captain said.

While the series defeat dented India’s chances at the World Test Championship, Rohit wasn’t looking too far ahead. “I can’t think about what lies ahead and whether it affects our chances (WTC final). We didn’t play well enough, and we lost the series, and that is hurting,” he averred.