An absolute horror show ensued at the Wakhede Stadium on Sunday as New Zealand did the unthinkable by thrashing India 3-0 at home. Coming fresh from a brutal 0-2 hammering against an above-average Lankan side, very few optimistic cricket fans expected New Zealand to even win a Test match let alone achieve a monumental clean sweep. 

But Latham and his men have conquered the Indian fortress and by doing so have proven to the world that India are not really invincible at home. The spin combo of Ajaz and Phillips wrapped up the proceedings on day three as the duo’s combined figures of 9-99 to drive New Zealand to a historic 3-0 whitewash. Ajaz in particular, had a devastating impact on the Indian batters and picked up 11 wickets in the match to dismantle India left, right, and center in both innings. 

A look at some of the long list of unwanted records for India

If you're an Indian fan then you would surely want to look away from the list of unwanted records that India have managed to register in this forgettable three-match Test series. 

• This is the first time India has been whitewashed in a three or more Test series at home.
• It is also their first-ever Test series whitewash since the year 2000. The last time a whitewash occurred was in a two-match Test series against South Africa
• New Zealand became the first-ever team to whitewash India 3-0 on Indian soil.
• This is India's first-ever Test series defeat at home since 2012. Prior to New Zealand, England were the last team who managed to achieve this remarkable feat.
• New Zealand managed to secure their first test win against India at home since the year 1988. 
• India's paltry 46-10 at Bengaluru is the lowest score ever scored by team India in a home Test.  

The shocking Test series defeat has further aggravated India's aspirations of securing a WTC Final spot. Following the 0-3 whitewash, India now has lost its spot at the top of the tree and slipped to the second position in the points table thus paving the way for Australia at the top who have an impressive PCT of 62.5. New Zealand too have made some rapid gains and have surged to the fourth position in the points table. The 2021 WTC Champions are very much in contention for a berth in the ongoing WTC Final. India face the arduous task of winning four out of five matches in the upcoming Border Gavaskar Trophy, which by no means will be a walk in the park for the wounded Indian side.

Ajaz Patel once again starred for New Zealand in the third and final Test of the three-match series by claiming superb figures of 5-103 to restrict India to 263. The 36-year-old got to the milestone by removing Ashwin on the last ball of the 58th over when he had him caught by Daryl Mitchell in the first slip. 

Ajaz has a special bond with the city of Mumbai. Known to be his birthplace, Ajaz had previously performed well at the Wankhede. The left-arm spinner recorded his career-best 10-wicket haul in the second match of the 2021 Test series against India where he claimed all 10 wickets to equal Anil Kumble & Jim Laker’s record. Unfortunately, New Zealand went on to lose that Test match by a whopping 372 runs.

A short summary of his performance in the ongoing third Test

This is Ajaz Patel’s sixth five-wicket haul in Test cricket. All six of them have come on Asian soil including two apiece in India & Sri Lanka and one each in Pakistan and Bangladesh. The crafty left-arm spinner enjoys bowling in the Indian subcontinent and thrives in these helpful conditions. India has been a happy hunting ground for him since as many as 26 out of 79 Test wickets in Asia have registered on Indian soil. Surprisingly, the Mumbai-born spinner has never picked up a wicket on his home turf in New Zealand. 

See Also: Pant and Gill hit fifties to drive India forward in Mumbai

Speaking of his performance in the third Test, Ajaz managed to pick up five wickets at the expense of 103 runs while going at a little over 4.5 RPO. Jaiswal, Siraj, Gill, Sarfaraz, and Ashwin were among his five victims. In his nearly 22 overs long spell, the 34-year-old bowled three maidens and got the ball to bite off the surface on regular occasions. His double-wicket over late in the day on day one swung the momentum of the game dramatically in favor of the visitors.  

At the time of writing, the game was nicely set up for the two sides as, despite Ajaz’s heroics with the ball, India were able to eke out a crucial lead of 28 runs.

New Zealand's Ajaz Patel provided the breakthrough by dismissing Yashasvi Jaiswal and then claimed a big wicket in the form of India skipper Rohit Sharma. Rohit, after scoring a much-needed half-century, was bowled by Patel in a moment that has since gone viral. The dismissal came during Day 3 of the first Test between India and New Zealand in Bengaluru, as India chases a steep New Zealand lead of 356 runs.

Ajaz Patel breaks India’s opening partnership- Dismisses Rohit Sharma

New Zealand spinner Ajaz Patel gave his team their first breakthrough of the innings by removing Yashasvi Jaiswal for 35. After Jaiswal’s dismissal, India’s captain Rohit Sharma was joined by Virat Kohli at the crease as India aimed for a strong partnership in response to New Zealand’s massive total of 402. Rachin Ravindra played a key role in propelling New Zealand's score, hammering a brilliant 134 runs, while Devon Conway added 91. Tim Southee also contributed a useful 65 runs lower down the order. India’s bowlers did their best, with Kuldeep Yadav and Ravindra Jadeja taking three wickets each, while Siraj, Bumrah, and Ashwin chipped in with key wickets.

India, having been bundled out for just 46 in their first innings, faced a monumental task. As New Zealand piled on the runs, the hosts desperately needed a strong batting response from their top order.

See Also: Sammy calls 'Moral Victory' in West Indies' series loss to Sri Lanka

Rohit Sharma’s viral Dismissal after a gritty fifty  | Watch His Unlucky Dismissal

Just when India started showing signs of recovery, captain Rohit Sharma hit a much-needed half-century. The opener had struggled with form in recent matches, but finally redeemed himself by smashing a powerful fifty, including a boundary off Matt Henry that brought up the milestone in 59 balls. His fans were elated, and hopes for an Indian comeback were high.

Rohit Sharma Dismissal 🥹💔#INDvNZ #RohitSharma𓃵 #ViratKohli𓃵 pic.twitter.com/C2RLoLnu0R

— Ravi 🧡🧡 (@ravi95094) October 18, 2024

Rohit Sharma played a brilliant half-century in the second innings against New Zealand.

Was a bit unlucky and the way he got out was sad. This match is taking place in Chennaswamy, Bangalore.#TestAtHome #INDvNZ #RohitSharma𓃵 pic.twitter.com/WgQ2dFeML4

— Vishal Pandey (@Vishal_aawaj) October 18, 2024

However, Rohit’s joy was short-lived as Ajaz Patel struck again, dismissing him shortly after his half-century. In a disappointing moment for both Rohit and India, the skipper was bowled by a length delivery from Patel that straightened just enough to hit the stumps. Rohit, who thought he had played a solid forward defense, stood in disbelief as the ball rolled off his bat’s inner edge onto the stumps. His reaction of disappointment was captured on camera and quickly went viral across social media platforms, leaving fans heartbroken. Patel’s second breakthrough left India two wickets down, with New Zealand firmly in control.

With Virat Kohli at the crease, India will now be looking for a resilient partnership to fight back from their position of vulnerability, but New Zealand remains in command of the match as they hold a 356-run lead.

New Zealand spinner Ajaz Patel became the third bowler in Test history to take 10 wickets in an innings as he dismissed India in his birth city of Mumbai. Left-arm Patel – who emigrated with his family as a child – matched the feat of India off-spinner Anil Kumble against Pakistan in Delhi in 1999 and England off-spinner Jim Laker against Australia at Old Trafford in 1956. Patel’s milestone moment came when India tailender Mohammed Siraj top-edged a slog-sweep to Rachin Ravindra on the second afternoon of the second Test at Wankhede Stadium.

Patel finished with 10-119 from 47.5 overs as India were all out for 325 in 109.5 overs in their first innings – before New Zealand were skittled for just 62 in 28.1 overs in reply to concede a first-innings deficit of 263, which India increased to 332 by stumps. Siraj (3-19) dismissed three of the top four Black Caps batters, including Ross Taylor (1), while Ravichandran Ashwin snared 4-8 as only Tom Latham (10) and Kyle Jamieson (17) reached double figures. Mayank Agarwal (38*) and Cheteshwar Pujara (39*) guided India to 69-0 at the close, with the hosts now well on course to win the game and take the two-match series 1-0. Patel’s first-innings victims included Virat Kohli, Pujara, and Ravichandran Ashwin for ducks, as well as top-scorer Agarwal (150) and namesake Axar Patel (52).

Speaking after his 10-wicket haul, Patel said: “It is pretty surreal. I don’t think you ever really believe that you are going to achieve something like that, so to do it is pretty special. I am in an illustrious company. “I think I am very fortunate. The stars have aligned for me to have an occasion like that here in Mumbai, the place I was born. It was quite a special occasion for me and my family. “It was about finding a good rhythm and being repetitive, asking good questions of the batters.” Ashwin was out next delivery, bowled off stump by a beauty that spun just enough to pass the bat, as India slipped to 224-6.

Must Read: Lanka Premier League 2021: Sky247 announced as presenting sponsor

Patel savours despite New Zealand collapse

Agarwal then departed shortly after reaching 150 for the third time in Tests as Patel had him caught behind to leave India 291-7 and the bowler sensing a 10-wicket haul. Axar – who added 67 with Agarwal for the eighth wicket – become Patel’s eighth victim when he was out leg before following a successful New Zealand review. When Jayant Yadav (12) holed out to long-off, Patel was on the brink of history and there were then wild celebrations when the bowler dismissed Siraj to join the illustrious 10-wicket club. Patel was on song to record the best figures for New Zealand in Test cricket, but his efforts could be in a losing cause after his side were shot out for 62.

He had been at the wicket to save the previous Test on day five, and Patel was once again in the thick of the action in the city of his birth, Mumbai. Patel says that he will savor the special day despite the batting failures. “Personally I think it’s one of the greatest cricketing days of my life and probably will always be,” Patel told reporters. “From the team perspective, it’s obviously tough. But we still have more Test cricket left. We got to make sure we front up tomorrow and scrap as much as we can.

“We are on the back foot, but we got to come back here tomorrow and make sure we work as hard as possible to see how we can turn this game around or eke out something special.” “Ajaz really bowled well. It was extraordinary bowling by him. My plan was to put pressure on him but unfortunately, I got out,” said Siraj. Siraj credits diligent training with helping him hit the areas to trouble the New Zealand top order. “After I got injured (in the first New Zealand Twenty20 last month) when I started training, I did a lot of single wicket bowling with an aim to get as much swing as possible,” said Siraj.

“That was my focus and when I would get the chance in a Test match, I had to consistently hit one area and that’s what will help me build my rhythm.” India was 332 ahead by stumps at the Wankhede Stadium after not enforcing the follow-on and reaching 69 for 0 in their second innings.

Team India opener Mayank Agarwal pull India back on the game on Day 1 of the second Test match against New Zealand at Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai. The visitors managed to trigger a mini-collapse of a three-wicket burst in 10 balls by Ajaz Patel, but Mayank slammed a gritty century to pull them back in the game. Mayank was unbeaten on 120 at stumps alongside Wriddhiman Saha at stumps as India posted 221/4. The morning session of the match was wiped off due to a wet outfield after overnight heavy rain. Skipper Virat Kohli won the toss and elected to bat first after his return to competitive cricket after a short break.

Mayank Agarwal Returns to Form, the talented India opener has ended his 2-year-long century drought on Friday as he reached the triple-figure mark last time in November 2019 when he converted his ton to a double hundred against Bangladesh in Indore. After failing to capitalize on the opportunity in the first Test where he was 13 and 17 in absence of regular openers Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul, Mayank returned to form at the perfect time to lead India fightback against a quality bowling unit. He shared several crucial partnerships with other batters to stabilize India’s innings.

Mayank has a good record of converting the century into a big score and he will look to emulate the same on Saturday. Ayaz Patel Spun Web, spinner Ajaz Patel spun the web around India’s batting order to give New Zealand an edge over hosts in the middle overs. Ajaz was the standout bowler of the day and also the only one who got his name on the scoreboard with wickets under his kitty. He started troubling India by breaking a solid 80-run opening stand between Mayank Agarwal and Shubman Gill. He later struck twice in the same over to dismiss India’s captain Virat Kohli and number three Cheteshwar Pujara for ducks. While in-form Shreyas Iyer (18) was his last victim.

Must Read: India face a welcome dilemma with the return of skipper Kohli

Dravid’s Encouraging Words Help Indian Centurion Agarwal

Virat Kohli’s Controversial Dismissal, on his return after a brief break, Kohli failed to open his account as he was adjourned LBW on Ajaz Patel’s delivery. However, the dismissal raised several eyebrows as Kohli decided to take the review and the replay showed that the ball hitting the bat first. But the third umpire Virender Sharma felt that the evidence was inconclusive and asked the on-field umpire, Anil Chaudhary, to stick to his decision. The Indian skipper wasn’t happy with the decision as he had a chat with umpire Chaudhary before leaving the ground, he also slammed the bat to the ground.

The TV cameras then caught him standing in the dressing room balcony, visibly upset with the decision, which was a touch-and-go one. Cheteshwar Pujara’s Rough Patch Continues, Pujara’s rough patch continues as he was dismissed on a duck in the first innings as his stay in the middle was cut short by Ajaz Patel. The Test specialist faced just five balls in the innings as the century drought continues for him. He last reached a triple-figure mark way back in January 2019. In the first match, he scored 22 and 26 as the pressure is now mounting on him to perform and save his place in the playing XI as some talented young players are in queue knocking on the doors.

The Karnataka opener, who has scored two double centuries in Tests so far, highlighted that the first session on Saturday will be crucial. “It’s going to be very important, how we start is crucial, the focus is that. The first session we want to play it out, the wicket is going to get harder and harder to bat on,” he said, adding the pitch was helping those who were giving the ball a lot of revs. On completing his hundred with a four, Agarwal said, “It’s an amazing feeling to get a century in Test cricket, and to get it in Wankhede is extra special.”