Former cricketer Anil Kumble reacted to India’s disappointing defeat to New Zealand in the second Test of the series in Pune, stating that India’s batting has let the hosts down. Tom Latham’s New Zealand side made history by defeating Rohit Sharma’s team by 113 runs at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Pune on Saturday, securing their first-ever series win in India. This loss marks India’s first home Test series defeat since 2012, ending an 18-series unbeaten streak–the longest home winning sequence for any team.
New Zealand now leads the three-match series 2-0, with the final game set for November 1 at Mumbai’s iconic Wankhede Stadium.
Speaking to Jio Cinema, Kumble highlighted the significance of each Test match for India’s journey to the World Test Championship (WTC) final.
“I think that’s the beauty of the WTC. Although the series is over for India, each Test match remains crucial. They’ve made things harder for themselves. At the start of the series, we talked about needing five wins to comfortably reach the championship final. But now, with four wins required from the next six matches, it’s even tougher, especially with one game against this confident New Zealand side at Wankhede and five more in Australia,” Kumble said.
He praised India’s bowling attack and noted that they still top the WTC points table due to the bowlers’ ability to claim 20 wickets in the series. However, he emphasised the need for India’s batters to start scoring.
“India have done exceptionally well in their last two series in Australia, but qualifying now is even more challenging. They need to get their act together. The batting has been disappointing, and though the bowling will continue to face challenges, India are at the top because their bowlers have consistently taken those 20 wickets. The batting needs to step up and deliver runs,” he added.
