QUICK COMMENT: New Zealand’s greatest 10 days in their cricketing hory – and it came at India’s expense | Cricket News
Before October 16, the New Zealand men’s cricket team had won just two matches in India. Before October 20, the New Zealand women’s cricket team had never lifted the T20 World Cup trophy. Before October 26, the New Zealand men’s cricket team had NEVER won a Test series in India.
In the space of 10 days, all of that changed. Tom Latham’s band of brothers who weathered various challenges and Sophie Devine’s unheralded team with a mix of veterans and youngsters rising to the occasion created hory.
First up, a staggering bowling performance the Black Caps saw India bowled out for 46 all out in Bengaluru, a shock Rohit Sharma and Co couldn’t quite recover from despite the flickering of a fightback. At the end of that Test, they ended a 36-year-old wait for a Test win in India.
A few hours later, in an unlikely final between New Zealand and South Africa at the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup, it was the White Ferns who came out on top. New Zealand had lost 10 straight T20Is this year before the tournament. But they began the World Cup with a bang in a virtual quarterfinal against India, stunning Harmanpreet Kaur and Co a big margin. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that match essentially knocked India out of semifinal contention.
And then in Pune, on a track that aided spinners, New Zealand outbatted and outspun the Indian team to end an era of dominance. For the first time in 12 years, India lost a Test series at home. And much like the women’s team, this too came on the backdrop of not-so-great results in the format, as they had lost 0-2 in a two-match series in Sri Lanka.
“It’s a special day for New Zealand,” Ravi Shastri said on air. ‘India have been stunned in their backyard. It’s been a fortress for so many years but today there’s been an invasion.”
It’s hard to imagine if ever there has been a series of results more incredible than this in the hory of New Zealand cricket, especially given how much the odds were stacked against them.
