Indian skipper Rohit Sharma admitted he misread the pitch when he decided to bat first against New Zealand in the opening Test at M.Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru on Thursday. There was a lot of help for the seamers on a cloudy morning and New Zealand pacers were able to make the most of the favorable conditions.
Matt Henry and William O’Rourke were the chief destroyers as they scalped five and four wickets respectively to bundle out the hosts at 46, which is India’s lowest-ever score in home conditions and third-lowest overall in Test cricket.
Five Indian batters could not even open their account whereas only Yashasvi Jaiswal and Rishahb Pant could reach the double digits. The pitch was a minefield and the shot selection of batters like Ravindra Jadeja, Rohit Sharma, and Sarfaraz Khan was not up to the mark.
“We expected the pitch to be a little flatter. So clearly it was a misjudgment of the pitch. I did not read the pitch well enough, and now we sit in this situation,” Rohit said at the press conference.
“I am hurting a little bit because I made that call. But as a team, we want to challenge ourselves. This time around, it didn’t come off. We got bowled out for 46. As a captain, it definitely hurts to see that number,” Rohit added.
On including Kuldeep Yadav ahead of Akash Deep in the final XI, Rohit said, “We felt there was not much grass on the pitch. We added Kuldeep because he is bold on flat pitches and he has taken wickets.”
Rohit also provided an update on Rishabh Pant, who was hit on the knee on the second day’s play and had to go back to the dressing room.
“Unfortunately, the ball hit his knee cap – the same leg which he had surgery earlier. He has a little bit of swelling, and the muscles are quite tender. It was a precautionary measure (to come off the field). Rishabh did not want to take a risk because he has gone through a massive surgery on that particular leg. Hopefully he can recover tonight and we will see him back on the field tomorrow,” Rohit said.
Pant didn’t take the field on Friday as substitute wicket-keeper Dhruv Jurel continues to keep in his place.
