According to Sanjay Manjrekar, India’s top three players lack confidence when it comes to spin. He thinks India need to have supported their defense more and avoided dropping early wickets.
Sanjay Manjrekar, a former Indian cricket player, was disappointed with Team India’s batting following their disastrous defeat to New Zealand in the second Test at Pune. This was the hosts’ first series loss at home in twelve years. With one game remaining, the Kiwi spin attack, led by Mitchell Santner, who claimed 13 wickets in the match, put the hosts in their own spin trap and defeated India by 113 runs, giving the Indian hitters a taste of their own medicine.Manjrekar stated on news reports that he thought India may surprise when Shubman Gill and Yashasvi Jaiswal were playing together. However, he added that Gill does not have a “feel for spinners” and feels pressure when facing them on turning surfaces.
“When Shubman and Yashasvi were traveling together, I assumed there might be a surprise in store. It is evident that Shubman Gill lacks spinner feel. When he is playing spinners on turning pitches, a batter who is able to work with their feet naturally is obviously under pressure, Manjrekar remarked.
Manjrekar added that captain Rohit Sharma felt insecure on the crease against spin, and that star batsman Virat Kohli misjudged the length of Santner’s delivery once more. The top three of India’s top four, in his opinion, lack confidence when it comes to spin. He believes that instead of losing early wickets, India need to have supported their defense more.
“Virat Kohli miscalculated the length once more. The ball returned sharply to him, far fuller than he had expected. At the crease, Rohit Sharma lacked confidence. Many men, including the top three out of four, lack confidence when it comes to spin. It is evident that batting against spin in the opening session and a half is challenging on wickets such as these.If India had supported their defense a bit more, I believe that things may have been simpler. The presence of Rishabh Pant, Washington Sundar, and Ravindra Jadeja could have made this match much closer if India had not lost so many wickets earlier, he remarked.
New Zealand won the toss and chose to bat first before the game. The only player to have made some inroads into the batting was Ravichandran Ashwin (3/41). The Kiwis were in a commanding position at 197/3 thanks to half-centuries from Devon Conway (76 in 141 balls, with 11 fours) and Rachin Ravindra (65 in 105 balls, with five fours and a six).Following Conway’s dismissal, floodgates opened for wickets, with Washington Sundar (7/59), the comeback man, taking the final wickets to put NZ at 259 all out.
India had to surpass this very low total and take a sizable advantage. Young players Shubman Gill (30 in 72 balls, with two fours and a six) and Yashasvi Jaiswal (30 in 60 balls, with four boundaries) attempted to create a partnership after captain Rohit Sharma was dismissed for a duck. At 49 runs, though, their effort was cut short. Similar to the first innings, Mitchell Santner was able to move through the Indian lineup after Gill was dismissed.Indian batsmen were forced to dance to their own music on their own pitches by Santner (7/53) and Glenn Phillips (2/26) as they were dismissed for a mere 156 runs. With 38 runs in 46 balls, three fours, and two sixes, Ravindra Jadeja was the highest scorer.
In their second innings, the Kiwis put themselves in a strong position. The Kiwis extended their 103-run first-inning lead to 358 runs, led by captain Tom Latham’s 86 in 133 balls with 10 fours and significant contributions from Phillips (48 in 82 balls, with four boundaries and two sixes) and Tom Blundell (41 in 83 balls, with three fours). However, they were bowled out for 255 following some excellent bowling on the first session of day three by spinners.Once again, Sundar (4/56) led the bowling attack, while Jadeja (3/72) and Ravichandran Ashwin (2/97) wiped out the tail and lower-middle order.
With a crucial 62-run partnership with Shubman Gill (23 in 31 balls, four boundaries), opener Yashasvi Jaiswal gave India a strong start in the pursuit of 359. The Kiwi spinners took advantage of India and they were swept out for 245 when Jaiswal was out for 77 in 65 balls with nine fours and three sixes. India lost the test by 113 runs. Along with this, India suffered its first home series defeat in twelve years.With 13 wickets in the match, Santner (6/104) was once again the hero. Phillips (two wickets) and Ajaz (one wicket) both contributed to the Test’s early conclusion by helping to conclude it two days early.
