Kane is Able: Rumblings of The 12th Man

In the end, it didn’t ache like the way it ached in 2019. I don’t know why but probably because somewhere down the line, I always felt that New Zealand had all the aces up their sleeves to win the WTC finals. Or is it because I have got used to India losing important finals of ICC tournaments? India after all has reached 6 knockout matches post 2013 (3 finals and 3 semifinals) losing all of them. That’s 6 knockouts in 7 years.

It could also be because the high of beating Australia in Brisbane paled in comparison to this match. It could just be the mindset. Probably, I still can’t believe that one match can make you the world’s best side. To be fair, even if India would have won, it wouldn’t have eased the pain of the 2019 World Cup loss to New Zealand in the semi-finals.

Let’s not dilute the matter though. New Zealand deserves this win. They planned correctly and they executed brilliantly. This is the best New Zealand side that I have seen in my 37 years of following cricket. The process that started with Brendon McCullum has finally ended with a victory at the WTC finals to be crowned the best test team in the world. What’s more, this New Zealand side is the world number one in ODI cricket too at the moment.

But where did India lose it? What went wrong? Can India turn this around during the next 5 tests against England? Let’s delve into the details.

But first, let’s start with two very interesting statistics:

1. India was 182 for 6 in the first innings and ended the innings at 217.

2. New Zealand was 162/6 in their first innings and they ended the innings at 249.

Remember, India was 7 overs away from coming out of this match in even terms but as the above statistics show you, the difference lay in how much each of the team’s tails wagged.

New Zealand has always been blessed with a plethora of all-rounders. All their bowlers contribute with the bat. And the WTC finals showed us how it made a big difference in the final analysis.

Let’s look at another piece of data:

The last day of the test match when we finally got bright sunshine at Southampton, it was expected to be the best day for batting. Let’s look at the numbers to understand the story.

India scored 106/8 on the final day whereas New Zealand scored 140/2.

The difference is stark. On the same pitch, on the same day, one team catapulted whereas the other team came out trumps.

This is one problem that India needs to fix within the next 40 days otherwise this English summer might end up worse than 1974. 

If we review the matches over the last year that India played, one common scenario is that the team won due to humongous effort put in by the bowlers. Another important aspect has been the resistance shown by the lower middle order. India wouldn’t have reached the finals without the heroics of Rishabh Pant (Sydney & Brisbane), Ashwin, and Vihari (Sydney). The pace bowlers have done their job consistently but the batters have been disappointing.

Yes, the batsmen have scored heavily in India and against the West Indies but in two crucial series, New Zealand and Australia they have failed consistently.

Rohit Sharma has been one of the top scorers for India in this 2 year WTC cycle but close scrutiny will tell you that he has scored a solitary fifty during this period outside India. Virat Kohli has not scored a century across all formats for close to two years now. Chetashwar Pujara is averaging close to 29 in the last 2 years and Rahane has only one century at Melbourne which he can really be proud of. These things matter because the final was being played in England. I am sure the batsmen would have scored merrily if this same final was held in UAE. But in England, the conditions favoured swing bowling, and India was found wanting.

Things didn’t start badly though even after Virat Kohli lost an important toss. India was going at 4 runs per over till the first drinks break. But that break changed the momentum completely. Suddenly runs dried out and as soon as Rohit got out playing a loose shot away from his body, things started going New Zealand’s way.

From that time on, it was all New Zealand. Yes, India hung on. Gave a display of grit but that’s never India’s game. India is a team that loves to dominate but the conditions meant they had to dig deep. These were conditions where India needed the best out of Pujara, Kohli, and Rahane but all were found wanting especially Pujara.

The Indian think tank went with the option of two spinners which I think was the right call because Jadeja is the world’s number one allrounder and he can play purely as a batsman in any team. It’s unfortunate for India that he didn’t click in the finals.

After posting 217 in the first innings, it was New Zealand’s match to lose. They started with good intent and at 100/2, India was already hoping for 2 days of washout to save them from the loss. One day got washed out but two crucial days remained and as it panned out finally it was enough for New Zealand to win the inaugural WTC finals.

India had things going for them on the 5th morning when the bowlers came out with intent and didn’t give anything away. 31 runs were scored in 2 hours and in the process, India picked up 3 wickets too. India was well and truly back into the match. At 135/5, India got the window of opportunity to get hold of the proceedings but a bizarre decision to start with Jadeja and Bumrah (the two least effective bowlers for India) post-lunch backfired and by the time India got their main bowlers back into play, the New Zealand batters had got into the groove. India didn’t have a lot of runs to play with and naturally couldn’t go on an all-out attack and as soon as a few lusty blows were hit by Kyle Jamieson, the momentum shifted. Southee played merrily the way only he can, hitting a couple of sixes in the process and helped New Zealand eak out a 32 run lead.

From a position of losing grip of the match, New Zealand was back in the ascendancy and the onus was on India to save the match. With hardly much time left, it was a situation which India knew was not good for them. As soon as New Zealand got that lead, the match had only 2 possibilities, a draw or a win for the Kiwis. I had the feeling that we would get a result because India’s top order didn’t look comfortable against the New Zealand pace bowlers. Kyle Jamieson has been a thorn in India’s flesh from the time he debuted in 2020. He picked up 5 wickets in the first innings and he was the primary threat again in the second innings.

Southee’s positive show with the bat rubbed in his bowling too and he was the destructor in chief helping New Zealand pick up two wickets before the end of the day’s play.

The 6th and final day was supposed to be the best day to bat. There was an expectation from the Indian camp that finally Virat Kohli will come out blazing with the sun out. But he flattered to deceive and as it turned out fell victim to Kyle Jamieson once again. None in the top 5 looked comfortable other than Rohit Sharma who unfortunately got out to “Umpire’s call” the previous evening. The onus was now on the man of 2021 – Rishabh Pant to play positively and save India’s day. He tried his best but both Jadeja and Ashwin didn’t click with the bat. The entire decision to play the spinning all-rounders came to naught and as the records show expecting anything from the Indian tail is a fantasy that 9 out of 10 times doesn’t happen. India got bowled out for 170 runs and New Zealand needed 139 runs to win the finals.

India bowled well. They kept it tight but the wickets didn’t come. Ashwin brought in the cheers with two wickets but that’s where it ended for India as Kane Williamson and Ross Taylor carried New Zealand safely to home.

Jasprit Bumrah was a disappointment with the ball. He was supposed to be India’s trump card. But then all the trump cards failed to deceive and cricket is a team game and when your main players don’t show up it’s difficult to save the match.

New Zealand are the deserved winners of the WTC title 2021 but let’s not take anything away from this Indian team. India played a total of 17 test matches in the last two years (running up to the WTC finals) and won 12 of them – losing 4 (2 of those losses interestingly came against New Zealand). That’s the highest number of wins by any team in the world in the last two years. New Zealand on the other had played 11 matches and won 7 of them. So just on match count, India was far ahead of any other team but they lost the most important match of the last two years – the finals.

In this WTC cycle, India won 4 matches away from home whereas New Zealand won only 1 but when it mattered the most then came out trumps – the finals.

One of the best ways to judge how good a team has been is by checking how they fared away from home. And by this count too India has been ahead of everyone in the last two years.

As can be seen from the above or understood how this WTC cycle works, India passed the grueling tests of beating Australia in Australia and beating England in India – two of their toughest assignments but failed to turn on their A-game when it came to playing against New Zealand.

These statistics are more of a rumbling of an Indian fan but numbers don’t lie. Just on a series-by-series basis, this Indian team has been the best over the last 5 years and that’s why they have been the holders of the world number one title in Test cricket for most of the last 5 years.

With the finals over, it’s time for Team India to look forward and think of 2023 when the next WTC final will be held. India has a tough assignment of playing England in a 5 match test series which starts on August 4 and it’s high time the team management sits together and iron out the problem areas. For India to do well in England the top order has to play big innings. Cute-looking 30s and 40s won’t work because England will score big. England’s only weakness is in the top 3 but they hardly have a tail. If India got frustrated seeing the New Zealand tailenders bat then England will leave them with hands on their heads. Players like Woakes, Curran, Archer and Stuart Broad can hardly be called tailenders and hence it will be difficult for India to get through their lineup twice in a match so easily. Hence, to be competitive and to allow their bowlers to attack consistently the batters need to do their duty of scoring big runs.

It’s easier said than done because it’s difficult to play big against the pace battery that England has. But, if you want to be the champion side you need to beat the best teams in their home conditions. England was left frustrated in India with the spinning tracks and hence India should expect green seaming conditions in England throughout this summer. India needs to hope that the weather remains dry because then the combo of Ashwin and Jadeja will come to the party. More dry conditions would make our batsmen play a little more freely too.

One thing that hurt India a lot was the way the batsmen played – too slowly. Cricket is finally a numbers game. You need to score runs and in English conditions, you never know when that magic ball will come to take your wicket so when the sun shines make merry and score big.

India has the opportunity to relax for a few days and then start hard preparations for the long test series. I am sure Virat Kohli and his men want to leave a legacy behind them and the best way to remove this WTC finals loss from everyone’s mind would be by winning the series against England. India last won a series against England in England 14 years back. Time to create your own legacy – time to win England.

What do you think? Does India have it in them to win against England or will this loss leave them disheartened?

PS. India generally plays badly in the first test of a series – lost against England in Chennai and lost against Australia in Adelaide – but they bounce back strongly thereafter. If this tour is treated as a 6 match series then it’s not a bad omen for the rest of the tour! 

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