Published 10:26 IST, March 2nd 2020
'Disappointing': Virat Kohli pins blame on batsmen after series defeat against NZ
India skipper Virat Kohli has rued the lack of contribution from the batsmen after the heavy seven-wicket loss in the second Test against New Zealand.Â
India skipper Virat Kohli has rued the lack of contribution from the batsmen after the heavy seven-wicket loss in the second Test against New Zealand. India suffered the defeat in less than three days as New Zealand completed a memorable series sweep in the second Test in Christ Church on Monday.
Speaking at the end of the game, Kohi admitted the lack of contribution by his batsmen that let the team down. After making 242 in the first innings of the must-win second Test, India managed only 124 in their second inning, leaving the hosts with a victory target of 132 for a series sweep.
"No excuses. We accept it upfront and if we have to win away from home, we have to do that. No excuses, just learning to move forward. In Tests, we weren't able to play the cricket we wanted to," Kohli said.
"The batsmen didn't do enough for the bowlers to try and attack. The bowling was good, I thought even in Wellington we bowled well. Sometimes if you bowl well and things don't happen, you have to take it in your stride," the skipper added.
'Back to the drawing board'
Kohli said his team would have to 'go back' to the drawing board to correct the things and move ahead from there. Further speaking on the coin not landing in his favour had any impact, he said that India is not on the side that thinks about the result of the toss.
"It was a matter of not having enough intent in the first game, and not closing out here. We didn't bowl in the right areas for long enough. They created a lot of pressure. Disappointing, have to go back to the drawing board and correct things going forward," the skipper said."
"I think it was a matter of not having enough intent in the first game. We are not a side that thinks about the result of the toss. We need to accept we were not good enough, take it on the chin and move on," he added.
Updated 10:27 IST, March 2nd 2020