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On Saturday, October 26, the Indian cricket team went down against New Zealand, registering their first-ever series defeat against the Kiwis in a Test series in India at the Maharashtra Cricket Association (MCA) Stadium in Pune. The Men in Blue, who were chasing a massive target of 359 runs after bundling out New Zealand at the score of 255 early on Day 3, fell like a pack of cards as they failed to capitalise their chances in the middle.
Notably, at the start of day three of the second Test, New Zealand were 198/5 with Tom Bundell (30 off 70) and Glenn Phillips (9 off 29) and added 57 runs to put 359-run target on the board for the hosts. Ravindra Jadeja, who was wicketless till the start of Day 3, claimed three wickets, with Ravichandran Ashwin taking one. Following that, Yashasvi Jaiswal (77 off 65) gave a good start at the top to keep India in the Test match at the MCA Stadium in Pune.
New Zealand end India’s 18-match winning streak in Test cricket at home
With Yashasvi Jaiswal scoring his eighth Test half-century, Team India skipper, Rohit Sharma once again failed to convert his innings as he was dismissed after scoring just eight runs off 16 deliveries. Shubman Gill, who came down at the number three, stitched a crucial partnership with Jaiswal, only added 23 runs before falling off a brilliant catch by Darly Mitchell.
After that, they lost their wickets in quick succession, only Ravindra Jadeja could then get a score of substance for India, getting up to 42 runs off 84 balls, but without any support from the batters at the other end. It led to India getting bundled out in just 60.2 overs in their second innings after experienced Mitchell Santner picked six wickets while Ajaz Patel claimed two and Glenn Phillips scalped one for the Kiwis.
Moreover, this was the first-ever series win for New Zealand in India in Test match, it was also the biggest win of the century against that had not lost a home Test since 2012. For India, with this series defeat, they ended their record of 18 consecutive bilateral home series wins, the longest such sequence for any team.
