New Zealand has whitewashed India in the ODI series after registering the victory in the third ODI by five wickets. It was a disappointing defeat for India at the Bay Oval. Indian Skipper Virat Kohli said that they were good at setting targets but have failed to grab the opportunities in the field.
Like the other two games, the openers Mayank Agarwal could not set the game for the team.
However, in the third ODI, Prithvi Shaw scored 42 off 40 balls. While captain Kohli also lost his wicket at an early stage. But the middle-order batsman Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul brought India back in the game.
They stitched up the partnership to led India to set the target of 297 runs.
However, the visitors could not defend the target. Indian bowler Yuzvendra Chahal scalped most number of wickets, picking 3 wickets at an economy rate of 4.7.
While Indian pacer Shardul Thakur was the most expensive player, giving almost 10 runs in an over.
“The composure wasn’t enough to win games”: Virat Kohli
Post-game, Kohli accepted that Team’s fielding and bowling were not up to the mark. Further adding, the team India didn’t deserve to win the series because he put up their best effort in the field.
“The games were not as bad as the scoreline suggests. Batsmen coming back from tough situations was a positive sign for us, but the way we fielded and bowled, the composure wasn’t enough to win games.”
“Didn’t deserve to be on the winning side at all these series. Haven’t played so badly, but we didn’t grab opportunities”
“We feel we can win the Test series”: Indian skipper
Whereas, Kohli said the team is positive for the two-match Test series.
“We are excited about the Test series. We now have a balanced team. We feel we can win the series, but we need to step out on the park with the right kind of mindset.”
After losing the ODI series, India will play the Test series against New Zealand starting from 21st February.