Team India faced a major setback in the World Test Championship (WTC) final as New Zealand defeated them by eight wickets on Wednesday at Southampton.
Indian cricket fans and experts had expected their side to clinch the inaugural WTC title and avenge the humiliation they had faced at the hands of New Zealand in 2020.
However, Virat Kohli & Co. faltered like a pack of cards during their second innings of summit clash and lost a game that could have ended with a draw.
Put in to bat first, India scored a decent 217/10 in their first innings as the Kiwis gave a lead of 32 runs by smashing 249/10 in response.
The first and fourth day were washed off, and the game went into the reserve day. India looked in control, but a scintillating performance by the Kiwi bowlers barraged their line-up.
In their second innings, India could only muster a paltry 170/10 and gave a measly total of 139 to the Kane Williamson-led side.
New Zealand lost two early scalps on the sixth day, raising the anticipation for an Indian comeback. But contrary to the aspirations of Indian fans, Williamson, along with Ross Taylor, built a sturdy partnership and helped their side cross over the finish line.
Thus, the two and a half years WTC cycle (2019-2021) ended with the Black Caps winning the maze and the prize money for retaining their numero-uno spot in the International Cricket Council (ICC) Test Rankings.
Taking cognizance of the defeat, former Indian opener Virender Sehwag shared a meme from a popular TV series ‘Mirzapur’ in which the lead character ‘Kaleen Bhaiyya’ is expressing his disappointment with ‘Sharad Shukla.’
“Aapse better umeed kiye the hum (I had hoped for better things from you),” the dialogue read.
#INDvNZ pic.twitter.com/P6g8EuW10Z
— Virender Sehwag (@virendersehwag) June 23, 2021
