After a week of rain and gloom, India lost to New Zealand in the World Test Championship (WTC) final by eight wickets on Day 6 – the allocated reserve day – at the Rose Bowl, Southampton.
Virat Kohli’s men finished top of the points table, but they were outclassed in the final against the fiery New Zealand seam attack, led by Kyle Jamieson and Tim Southee.
Under bright sunshine at Southampton with a lead of 32 runs, India had resumed Day 6 at 64/2. Kohli and his deputy Ajinkya Rahane were in middle. They were bowled out for 170. Barring Rohit Sharma and Rishabh Pant, no Indian batter scored in excess of 20.
Jamieson, who returned 5-31 in the first innings, claimed two wickets in the second, while Southee got five scalps in the match. Chasing 139, New Zealand slipped to 44/2. Kane Williamson and Ross Taylor then held the fort and reached the target with 9.1 overs of play remaining.
Let us have a look at how each of the Indian players fared in the WTC final.
R Ashwin 7 (W 4, Ave 11.25, R 29, Ave 14.5)
Ashwin’s four wickets were all of left-handers. In conditions that assisted seam throughout, he picked up four wickets in 25 overs. He also scored 22 in the first innings.
Mohammed Shami 6 (W 4, Ave 26.75, R 17, Ave 8.5)
Shami made the New Zealand batters uncomfortable throughout the Test match. His 4-76 played a pivotal role to bowl New Zealand out for 249. He remained wicketless in the second innings but brought an impressive short spell before tea on Day 6.
Rohit Sharma 5 (R 64, Ave 32, C 1)
Rohit failed to convert his starts – 34 and 30 – into big scores. He was pleasant to watch whenever he cut or drove outside off. He also held an excellent catch.
Virat Kohli 4.5 (R 57, Ave 29.5, C 2)
Kohli looked in control on Day 2 but was not able to add to his overnight 44. He looked solid in difficult conditions but failed on the final day when the sun came out.
Ajinkya Rahane 4.5 (R 64, Ave 32, C 1)
Rahane, India’s highest run-scorer in the tournament, jointly top-scored for India in the final alongside Rohit. He scored 49 and 15, and facing 157 balls in the Test match, the most among Indians.
Ishant Sharma 4.5 (W 3, Ave 23)
Shami was ably supported by Ishant in the first innings. He bowled 25 overs for three wickets, conceding just 48.
Rishabh Pant 3.5 (R 45, Ave 22.5, St 1)
Pant failed in the first innings. He got a lifeline in the second when Tim Southee dropped him at slip. He later threw his wicket away to Trent Boult when his team needed him. He was the only decorated batter when he fell, triggering a collapse where India lost four wickets for 14 runs. He also had a stumping off Ashwin.
Shubman Gill 3.5 (R 36, Ave 18, C 1)
The decision to pick Gill, after his ordinary show against England, was questioned. He proved his critics wrong in the first innings. He got an eye-soothing 28 before he got a jaffa from Neil Wagner.
Ravindra Jadeja 3 (R 31, Ave 15.5, W 1, Ave 45)
Like Gill’s, Jadeja’s selection was also a major talking point. He only bowled 15.2 overs, got a solitary wicket, and scored 31 runs.
Cheteshwar Pujara 1.5 (R 23, Ave 11.5)
Pujara has not got runs for a long time. Comparisons with Rahul Dravid are a thing of the past now. He scored 8 and 15 here, and is perhaps running out of time.
Jasprit Bumrah 1 (R 0, W 0, C 1)
A rare ordinary display from Bumrah, who bowled 36.4 overs in the entire match but still remained wicketless. He also got a pair, though he did catch Kyle Jamieson.