Rohit Sharma was a disappointed captain as Team India suffered a humiliating eight-wicket defeat in the fourth ODI against New Zealand at Seddon Park, Hamilton on Thursday (January 31).
The bowlers set up the victory for the Kiwis by bundling out the visitors for a paltry 92 in 30.5 overs. It was a sorry batting card as none of the Indian batsmen managed to cross the 20-run mark. Left-arm pacer Trent Boult was the stand-out bowler as he picked up 5 for 21 while Colin de Grandhomme contributed with three scalps. Todd Astle and James Neesham also chipped in with wicket apiece.
In reply, Ross Taylor played an unbeaten knock of 37 runs and shared a match-winning 54-run stand with Henry Nicholls (30*) as the hosts registered a consolation win with 212 balls to spare.
Speaking at the post-match presentation ceremony, India’s stand-in skipper Rohit Sharma termed the dismal show with the willow as one of their "worst batting performances".
"One of our worst performances with the bat for a long, long time. Something like this, we never expected. But games like these can happen. You got to give credit to the New Zealand bowlers. After losing the first three matches, it was a magnificent effort from their bowlers," Rohit Sharma quoted.
"This is something to learn for us. When the conditions are not easy, we need to understand what we have to do as a batting unit. At times, you need to absorb pressure. We failed to do that today. We have got ourselves to blame ourselves for it," he added.
At one stage, Team India were tottering at 35/6 and were in danger of recording their lowest-ever total in ODIs (which stands at 54). However, a 25-run stand between Yuzvendra Chahal (18) and Kuldeep Yadav (15) helped India avoid an unwanted record.
"Things were looking good at that stage [during the opening stand]. I thought the wicket wasn't bad at all. It was a very good wicket to bat on. It was about applying ourselves. Once you get in, things will start to look easier. We failed to do that. We didn't apply ourselves, we played some bad shots as well,” Rohit remarked.
"It's always challenging when the ball is swinging. It's not just us, any team will find it difficult when the ball is swinging. Having a good run in the limited formats for a number of series. We expected ourselves to do well. I won't sit here and give excuses about what we didn't do well. Everyone knows what went wrong," he concluded.
Having won the first three ODIs, the Men in Blue have already taken an unassailable 3-0 lead in the five-match series. The fifth and final ODI will take place in Wellington on Sunday (February 3).
