Mumbai: The Indian team has lost their series at home for the first time in competitive cricketing nations when New Zealand blanked them 2-0 in the Tests. New Zealand cricket team beat India in Pune and won the three match series two nil. This win has made New Zealand the first team in more than a decade to upset India on their home soil. Now, in the third Test match will take place at the Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai, India will try to level the series at least and New Zealand will try to win the series.
After this surprising loss, the Indian head coach Gautam Gambhir has put certain restrictions in front of the Mumbai Test to put more power on the performance of the players.
Indian players to cancel their recovery days
In the first instance, the Indian players were offered a two-match break, with the rest days being October 27 and 28, before the final Test on November 1. Yet, as per the information in The Indian Express, the team management has now been insisting that all the players take part in practises on the 30th and 31st of October, turning the sessions into mandatory ones. The planned rest time will be achieved by following this format in a somewhat unorthodox fashion: no PLAYER will be allowed to miss out on these meetings.
Deviation from the Previous Practise Standards
Generally, Indian players and for that matter senior players of side and fast bowlers are given the provision to miss the final outing before a Test match with an intention to keep them fit for the match. This kind of approach has been in practise for a long time in the team due to nature of Test cricket. But being the former Indian cricket team captain, Gambhir has refused to give any excuse and insisted on everyone’s attendance to prepare for the crucial WTC points will be up for the grabs at Mumbai.
WTC Points Scenario And The India’s Way Forward
India had the points percentage of 68.06% before the Pune Test, occupying the first position in the WTC rankings. India has remained head of the charts now with only 62.82% due to two consecutive losses they experienced earlier. To confirm their place in the WTC final without depending on other outcomes, Rohit Sharma’s team must win at least four of their six subsequent games – NZ and five games against Australia in their own backyard.