India’s performance in the first Test against New Zealand has been disappointing, marking a difficult start to the series. After choosing to bat first in overcast conditions, the home team found themselves in serious trouble, losing nine wickets with very few runs on the board. While India managed to surpass their infamous lowest Test total of 36 runs, the batting collapse has raised serious concerns.
A particularly embarrassing record was set when four of India’s top seven batters—Virat Kohli, Sarfaraz Khan, KL Rahul, and Ravindra Jadeja—were dismissed for ducks. This is the first time in India’s Test history that four of the top-order batters have failed to score in a home match. Overall, this marks the third instance of such a collapse in India’s Test history, with previous occurrences in Leeds (1952) and Manchester (2014) against England.
Despite favorable pre-match predictions for India, New Zealand capitalized on the conditions, with bowlers William O’Rourke, Matt Henry, and Tim Southee wreaking havoc on the Indian batting lineup. Excessive swing and bounce proved too much for the Indian batters, resulting in five players, including Ravichandran Ashwin, being dismissed for zero.
Only Yashasvi Jaiswal (13) and Rishabh Pant (20) managed to reach double figures, but their efforts were insufficient to salvage the innings. The disastrous start has evoked memories of India’s infamous 36 all-out against Australia in Adelaide in 2020, raising questions about the team’s ability to handle such conditions.
Looking ahead, the responsibility will fall on India’s bowling unit, led by Jasprit Bumrah, to turn the tide. With conditions still favorable for fast bowling, India will need to quickly dismiss the New Zealand batters. However, the team opted for a spin-heavy lineup, with only two seamers, which may prove challenging as they attempt to claw their way back into the match.
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