India’s dominant home streak in Test cricket came to an unexpected halt as they suffered a crushing 113-run defeat to New Zealand in Pune, marking their first home series loss in 12 years. Mitchell Santner’s remarkable 13-wicket haul exposed India’s ongoing struggle against quality spin, particularly left-arm variations. His seven wickets in the first innings shattered India’s confidence, setting up New Zealand’s first series victory on Indian soil in nearly seven decades.

Chasing a daunting target of 359, India’s batting lineup faltered once more, folding for 245 runs. Despite commendable efforts from Yashasvi Jaiswal (77) and Ravindra Jadeja (42), the hosts couldn’t handle Santner’s relentless spin, exposing a vulnerability that has persisted since their earlier collapse for 46 in Bengaluru.

This defeat marks India’s only fourth home series loss since 2000, further illustrating the significance of New Zealand’s achievement.

The series defeat also dents India’s standing in the World Test Championship (WTC), though they retain the top position with 98 points. However, their win percentage now stands at 62.82, giving Australia a narrow opportunity to overtake. This downturn in India’s form at home is certain to fuel discussions around their lineup’s susceptibility to left-arm spin and the overall preparedness against quality spin attacks.

Rohit on WTC

Indian captain Rohit Sharma, in the post-match press conference, was asked whether misgivings over a place in the WTC final have surfaced following rare back-to-back losses in home conditions. Rohit, however, was adamant that the Indian team was more hurt about the series defeat than the WTC; India still have six Tests remaining in the ongoing cycle, but five of them will be Down Under against Australia.

“It's too early to think about WTC. I'm just hurting because we lost the game, that is what I will say. I can't think about what lies ahead and let it affect our chances,” said Rohit.

“We didn't play well enough in these two games, and it's hurting. There are things that we need to do as a unit, not just as batters but also as bowlers. It's a collective failure, not because of a particular thing.

“When you win a Test, everyone deserves credit. when you lose, everyone takes the blame.”

India bowled the Kiwis out for 259 in the first innings, but were bundled for just 156 in return. After New Zealand produced another impressive performance, this time scoring 255, the target proved too far for the Indians, as the side was bowled out for 245, thus conceding a 113-run loss.

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