New Zealand Swept to a Record 3-0 Test Series Victory Over India

On day three of the third and final Test match in Mumbai on Sunday, the Black Caps defeated the hosts by 25 runs after dismissing them for 121 on a difficult surface, completing an unprecedented 3-0 series whitewash in India.

Rohit Sharma’s team will be under pressure ahead of a difficult five-match series against Australia that begins this month. The last time India was blanked at home was in a two-match series against South Africa in 2000.

After the hosts were reduced to 29 for five on a twisting track at Wankhede Stadium, Rishabh Pant was the only batsman from India to demonstrate fight, scoring an incredible 64. In order to help skittle the hosts once more, fellow spinner Glenn Phillips got three for 42, while player of the match Ajaz Patel took six for 57, his second five-wicket haul of the game.

“It’s seriously special first of all to win a Test match here at this historic ground but also to win a series 3-0,” explained Daryl Mitchell, who scored 82 in the first innings. “It’s something you dream of. To come over here and actually achieve it is pretty special against a world‑class Indian team … we’re just a bunch of Kiwis taking on the world.”

The tourists concluded the series in Pune with a 113-run victory after winning the first Test match in India in 36 years by eight wickets in Bengaluru. In addition to ending the hosts’ 18-game winning streak at home since a 2-1 loss to England in 2012, New Zealand’s first series victory in India dates back to 1955.

In the first over, Sharma stepped out of his crease to hit Matt Henry for a four while the team was chasing 147 to win. However, the captain’s poor recent record continued when he was dismissed for 11 after making a careless shot against the same bowler. Shubman Gill, who had hit an incredible 90 in the first innings, left one that smashed into the stumps and went out for one, allowing Patel to take two wickets in two overs.

Virat Kohli was dismissed at 18 for three after he managed to get Patel to slip on one. As Sarfaraz Khan smacked a full toss from Patel straight to Rachin Ravindra in the deep on one and Glenn Phillips caught Yashasvi Jaiswal lbw for five, the audience fell silent once more.

Pant and Ravindra Jadeja calmed the ship with a 42-run partnership, but Will Young’s spectacular catch put India at 71 for six. After lunch, Patel removed Pant after a New Zealand review, despite the batsman’s apparent inability to make touch with the ball before it was caught. After then, the runs stopped coming, and India fell apart, with Washington Sundar being the last to go down as he tried to win a major match.