India's cricket team lost the ODI series against New Zealand recently with a scoreline of 1-2. The first match was won by India in Vadodara while they lost the second and third one in Rajkot and Indore respectively. Even after Virat Kohli's fantastic innings of 124 runs, India could not win in the last match.
India lost the last match while chasing a target of 338 runs by 41 runs. The therefold series loss led to social media criticism, some of which pointed to head coach Gautam Gambhir. Senior Indian player Ajinkya Rahane has commented on the recent performances of the team.
Rahane: No Stability
Ajinkya Rahane mentioned that India has been able to win only four matches out of the last nine played in the one-day international format. He attributed the erratic performance to one of the main reasons being the constant changing of players. “When the GOAL is to win the World Cup players need confidence and stability,” he said.
Rahane also stressed the need for good communication from the team management. He pointed out that players need to be assured about their roles and selection before they can deliver consistently.
Expectations and Series Results
Rahane further said that Indian fans never stop expecting the team to win every match, especially when they are playing on the home turf. He further mentioned that supporters find it hard to accept losses at home. Many people were of the opinion that the Indian team would easily sweep the New Zealand team in the home ODI series planned for 3-0, as the Kiwi's overseas tour was with a largely new squad.
Nevertheless, Rahane accepted that New Zealand did play excellently all through the series. He said it was now time for India to analyze its performance, and it should let the loss to the opponent be a reason for the analysis.
Review and Preparation Time
Rahane suggested that India should take its time with reviewing and figuring out where they went wrong. He revealed the next ODI series of the team is in six months, which can be an opportunity for strategic planning and quality improvement, thus, the team can be preparing for the World Cup by then.
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