After losing the second Test against New Zealand, the Indian Test skipper, Rohit Sharma, had said that it was time to have a “quiet chat” with some teammates. With India suffering its first ever whitewash in a Test series of three or more matches at home — this is also India’s first Test series loss at home in 12 years — the Indian selectors must make some loud, censorious noises — and they must begin with
Mr Sharma. After all, the Indian captain along with Virat Kohli had a less than modest outing with the bat against New Zealand. Ageing cricketers may not always strike gold in their sunset years and it is now time to take a closer look at the showing of these two players. A redeeming performance in the forthcoming tour Down Under — a difficult proposition? — could yet prolong their careers in national colours. The Kiwis have also destroyed another long-held belief about Indian batsmen: that Indians are excellent players of spin. This may have been true of Indian teams of yore but in recent times, the Indian team has been losing heaps of wickets to visiting spinners who are not necessarily great exponents of the art of spin. The irony is that it was the Indians, rather than the visitors, who were made to dance on the rank turners that had been prepared for this series. Whether this failure can be attributed to complacency, the lack of preparation or technical incompetency needs to be established and the errant ones — India’s fabled batsmen — be made to play some amount of domestic cricket to fix the problem. India’s coaching unit has a bit of explaining to do as well. For instance, its wards seem to believe that playing fearless cricket, seemingly the mantra of this side, is akin to playing reckless cricket. Is it necessary for India to have an equivalent of England’s Bazball approach?

However, India’s failings — they were many — must not take anything away from the superlative performance of the Kiwis. Before coming to India, New Zealand had been humbled by the Sri Lankans. But New Zealand pulled up their socks, prepared well, and were the better team in all departments of the game. They proved, once again, that a committed, competent side playing together as a team can often get the better of a rival team studded with stars. This triumph against India would undoubtedly inspire New Zealand when they play in the subcontinent in the future.