Former Indian cricketer Sachin Tendulkar has reacted to India’s home Test series defeat against New Zealand and called it a “tough pill to swallow”. Tendulkar wondered where India went wrong and called for some introspection from the team. However, he praised Shubman Gill for his 90 in the first innings and Rishabh Pant for his twin fifty and the way he applied himself in difficult conditions. India lost a home Test series after 12 years as New Zealand won the series 3-0 against the Rohit Sharma-led side.

“Losing 3-0 at home is a tough pill to swallow and it requires some introspection. Was it a lack of preparation, poor shot selection or a lack of match training? Shubman Gill showed resilience from the first innings, and Rishabh Pant was brilliant in both innings – his footwork made a difficult surface look like a completely different surface, he was simply superb,” Tendulkar wrote on X.

The master blaster also thanked the Kiwis for their consistent performance.
“All credit goes to New Zealand for their consistent performance throughout the series. Winning 3-0 in India is the best possible result,” he added.

Tweet from Sachin Tendulkar

IND vs NZ: as it happened

The Tom Latham-led side completed a historic 3-0 sweep against India at the Wankhede Stadium by winning the 3rd Test by 25 runs. This is the first time India have been whitewashed in a series of three or more Tests at home. New Zealand became only the fourth team to whitewash India in a 3-plus Test series after England (4), Australia (3) and West Indies (once). It was also the first ever time New Zealand had won three Tests in a home or away series and the first three in their history to win three successive away Tests.

On a tricky track prone to spin, India faltered from the start in their chase of 147 runs. In the first 8 overs, India lost half their team and were reeling at 29/5. Rishabh Pant played a counter-attacking innings, but a controversial dismissal sent him back to the pavilion for 64 runs. Ajaz Patel picked up six wickets as India were bundled out for 121 runs.