India suffered a heartbreaking loss against New Zealand in the inaugural WTC finals at Southampton. Kiwis won their first major ICC trophy after 21 long years. They upped their game on the day it mattered the most and blew India away. Their pacers were relentless, disciplined, and gave nothing away. let’s discuss the Reasons Why India Lost The WTC Final.
India who were expected to play positive cricket on the final day to set up the game disappointed. They seemed to be confused between taking the aggressive route and playing defensively. India eventually fell short of posting an interesting target.
Why India Lost The WTC Final
#3 Tail end problem
India has struggled overseas mainly owing to lower-order issues. It is a two-fold problem that stings them. Indian lower-order batsmen have struggled to apply themselves in face of quality bowlers. They don’t seem to enjoy batting under trying conditions. On the other hand, Indian bowlers have been unable to dislodge the opposition tail-end batsmen easily. The lower order of New Zealand scored vital runs in the first innings. Their combined total made a vital difference in the eventual outcome of the game.
#2 Indian fast bowlers lacked discipline
Indian fast bowlers couldn’t swing the ball as prodigiously as the New Zealand fast bowlers. Indian pacers being predominantly seam bowlers didn’t help their cause. But one thing that hampered India was that their bowlers didn’t bowl with enough discipline. All the 3 fast bowlers were guilty of bowling one bad ball every year.
New Zealand pacers on the other hand were not just taking wickets but were extremely economical too. They kept running in tirelessly but never gave away a bad ball. This made India’s task even more challenging.
#1 The batting failure of India’s key men
Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill provided India a solid start in the first innings. It felt that India despite not playing a game in England were battle-ready. But the reality was from it. In both innings, the top 5 Indian batsmen got off to solid starts and spent a good time in the middle. But shockingly none of them converted the start to a big score. They were found wanting and didn’t have any answers to the questions posed.
Cheteshwar Pujara has played far too many innings consuming deliveries but has too few knocks to show for. He was again guilty of robbing the momentum in both the innings with his awkward stay. Ajinkya Rahane appeared soft and seemed a ball away from getting out. Gill has shown promise but has nothing substantial to show so far. Virat Kohli’s century drought caught up with India. They needed a big knock from the captain but he couldn’t deliver.
These factors have often plagued India right through the WTC but players have stepped up more often than not to hide these shortcomings. But India couldn’t get away with these issues in the finals. It was another opportunity that India has missed. They were easily the best team in WTC but sadly came second in the finals.
Also read: Ravindra Jadeja To Spot In First Place Of All-Rounders In The Latest ICC Test Rankings
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