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Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma came under fire on Monday as India suffered a 3-0 home Test series defeat against New Zealand, with critics labeling the team as aging and lacking in confidence.
The cricketing superpower went down by 25 runs on Sunday in the third Test in three days in Mumbai for only their second series whitewash at home.
It sealed New Zealand’s historic first-ever Test series triumph on Indian soil.
India has little time to put things right as they travel to Australia for a five-match Test series starting on November 22.
“Losing 3-0 at home is a tough pill to swallow and it requires some introspection,” former skipper Sachin Tendulkar wrote on social media.
“Was it a lack of preparation, poor shot selection or lack of match practice?”
India entered the series against the Black Caps second in the ICC Test rankings, behind Australia, and clear favourites.
But repeated batting collapses – they were all out for 46 in their first innings in the opening Test – set off alarm bells.
It didn’t get much better from there.
“I accept the fact that we were not good enough with the bat throughout the series,” skipper Rohit said.
This particularly showed the Indian batsmen’s surprising inability to deal with spinners on turning pitches in their own backcourt.
Mitchell Santner took 13 wickets in the second match while Mumbai-born New Zealander Ajaz Patel took 11 in the third Test to condemn India.
– Lack of motivation? –
With Australia looming large, the form of Rohit, 37, and superstar batsman Kohli, 35, is of particular concern to Indian cricket fans.
Rohit made 91 runs in three matches. Kohli is only 93 years old.
“The sad reality is that this is now a team in transition with key figures aging, out of form and lacking in confidence,” writes the Times of India newspaper.
“Two of their stalwarts, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, appear to be in a state of terminal decline with a strange reluctance to acknowledge it and take corrective action, like fine-tuning their game by playing domestic cricket,” he adds .
Indian media reported that all senior players, including Rohit and Kohli, were invited to play the four-day domestic Duleep Trophy matches, but the players refused due to “lack of motivation”.
“They definitely should have practiced,” former India captain Sunil Gavaskar told The Indian Express.
“I know we beat Bangladesh and so it seemed like a breeze against New Zealand,” Gavaskar added.
“But New Zealand, obviously, had a better attack, with cricketers who have played in India and the IPL, who have a feel for what Indian pitches do.”
Rohit and Kohli retired from T20 cricket following the team’s World Cup triumph in June.
Spinner Ravichandran Ashwin, 38, and Ravindra Jadeja, 35, also suddenly seem to be catching up, critics said.
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