Heading to the final test, everyone expected it to be a dead rubber. It is, but with a twist. It’s not New Zealand who is on the losing side. Visitors without Kane Williamson and Trent Boult managed to beat India in India. It wasn’t a close call, the Kiwis overpowered India in every department.
In Mumbai, the mighty Indian Test team will play for its pride and mostly importantly for WTC finals. Any further dent in their campaign, they will have to rely on the results of other contenders. This year has been a rollercoaster. India ended its ICC trophy drought in June, then lost the ODI series against Sri Lanka and home series defeat. India has lost a test series on home soil, first rst time in 12 years.

Also Read: Ind vs NZ: India in a critical mess

Pitch Report
Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium traditionally has been a hunting ground for batters. The red soil here allows the ball to come nicely on to the bat. Given the circumstances, a pitch favouring Indian spinners is definitely in contention. Indian batters in the first test were bundled out by pacers and by spin in 2nd test. We have to wait until tomorrow to see how the pitch is, and what can be expected. If its spin friendly, a low scorer like Pune is on the cards.
Squads
India would probably rest Jasprit Bumrah to manage his workload. He is the critical element in the team, who is going to lead Indian bowling in Australia later this year. Dhruv Jurel or Axar Patel might as well get a chance. Its baffling to see player like Axar Patel is warming the bench. He proved to be a reliable option, even outperforming likes of Ashwin and Jadeja at times.
Playing XI- Rohit Sharma (c), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubhman Gill, Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant/Dhruv Jurel, Sarfaraz Khan, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar/Axar Patel, Akash Deep, Mohammad Siraj
New Zealand on the hand might stick to its winning combination. Kane Williamson won’t be playing 3rd test either. They are on the verge of giving India its biggest embarrassment in recent times.
New Zealand to play the same XI from the Pune test.
What went wrong for India
There few things. Firstly, India failed to read its own pitches. The host nations prepare pitches to suit their squad. Whether India played on this card or not is a different thing. Its failure to judge Bengalore wicket cost them massively. A spinning track in Pune did not help either. Indian batters fumbled badly against NZ spinners. Reckless shot making made worsened the situation. Lack of faith in Axar Patel is mind boggling. He demonstrated his ability to score on tricky wickets carrying the tail, was instrumental in India defending BGT at home last year. Surprisingly, he was sidelined for both the matches in this series.
India has a challenge to avoid whitewash and stay alive on its own in WTC final race. Relying on others will not guarantee and also affects the credibility of the team. The downfall from being favourite to struggle for survival in just 2 matches is unbelievable. Reminds of India’s debacle at 2021 T20 World Cup.