IND vs NZ | Indian batmen did not make necessary adjustments, feels Craig McMillan
Craig McMillan feels that the Indian batsmen did not make any adjustments in the way they played and that they threw their hands at the ball the same way they do in Indian conditions. McMillan further lauded the effort of Southee and Boult, both of who were exceptional during the course of the game.
Former hard-hitting New Zealand batsman Craig McMillan has slammed the Indian batsmen after their abysmal batting performance in the first test against New Zealand at Wellington, stating that they did not make the necessary adjustments that were required for New Zealand conditions.
The Indians were nowhere near their best as they gave their wickets away, chasing or defending balls outside the off stump. Apart from Mayank Agarwal and Ajinkya Rahane, all the other batsmen never looked in control at the middle for India. The former batting coach of the Blackcaps blasted the Indian batsmen for ‘throwing hands at the ball’ as the visitors surrendered at the hands of the mighty-impressive Kiwi swing bowlers.
The 43-year-old further lauded the efforts of Tim Southee and Boult, who were exceptional during the course of the game. McMillan added that he did not see the Indian collapse coming.
"When the ball doesn't bounce above knee high you can get away with some of those shots - in New Zealand you don't. When the ball's swinging, and it did for most of that Wellington Test, Boult and Southee are geniuses. I haven't seen India, the number one Test side in the world, dismantled like they were over those four days in Wellington,” said McMillan, reported News18.
New Zealand were humbled when they toured Australia in their last series, but the Kiwis fought back in style as they didn’t allow a single Indian batsman to settle down, restricting the Men in Blue under 200 in both the innings. McMillan was heavily impressed by the Kiwi bowlers' attitude against the Indian batsmen and labeled the victory as a ‘rare’ one for the Black Caps as they defeated the World’s number one Test side.
"Rare are the Tests in which the Black Caps beat the world's number one Test side. To do so against a team who had won seven straight Tests, each by a massive margin, makes it even more impressive," he added.
The result means New Zealand head into their next match in Christchurch starting Saturday with the chance of claiming a rare Test series sweep over India. The last time it happened was in 2002, when they swept a two-Test series at home.