Dominating win in Wellington followed by a comprehensive victory in Christchurch against a "world-class" Indian side were extremely "satisfying" for New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson, who lauded his team's effort in all departments, performing significantly better with the ball, bat and in the field.
Williamson's men made a remarkable comeback from the 3-0 Test series whitewash in Australia and also significantly boosted their chances in the World Test Championship, bagging 120 points from the two-match series to now be third in the nine-team points table.
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"It's an outstanding feeling," Williamson said at the post-match presentation ceremony. "The surfaces in both the Tests were quite sporting. Bowlers had to put it in the right areas, but this pitch played well on all the days, even though history suggests it flattens out after doing a bit initially."
"A fantastic series from outside and the way the guys stuck in. India are a world-class side and to beat them is quite satisfying," he added.
The injury to Neil Wagner ahead of the first Test proved blessing in disguise as New Zealand discovered a new fast bowling talent in Kyle Jamieson. The tall right-arm pacer moved the ball and generated uncomfortable bounce off the deck, returning with nine wickets from his debut series, apart from making crucial runs lower down the order.
"Jamieson is an exciting talent, and contributed incredibly well with both bat and ball in both games," the captain said. "He's tall and gets bounce which is very helpful in these conditions."
"The runs he scored in the backend of both games were very valuable. Great progress for him."
India won the T20I series 5-0 but the Kiwis bounced back strongly from there, turning the tables on visitors in the ODIs and the Test matches.
"A few heavy learning curves, a few good bits in this summer, but these are all part of it. You're always trying to improve and the two games here have been opportunities to learn too," Williamson concluded.
(Inputs from IANS)
