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Were India Overconfident Vs New Zealand In First Test Match? R Ashwin Drops Huge Bombshell

Anurag Dasgupta

NZ celebrate Ashwin's wicket in Bengaluru Test [Source: PTI] NZ celebrate Ashwin's wicket in Bengaluru Test [Source: PTI]

India are invincible at home and there is a reason not team has been able to breach their fortress for the last 12 years. Teams have come and teams have gone back empty handed as India show their ruthless side at home and know the conditions on the back of their hands.

However, New Zealand sprung a surprise as they shocked the home team with a stunning performance. Rohit Sharma seemed overconfident when he elected to bat first on a seaming deck and the Kiwi bowlers took full advantage of the situation.

R Ashwin's huge revelation as India mount a comeback

They bundled out India for a paltry 46 as the decision to bat first backfired badly on the Indian team. Despite a better showing with the bat in the second innings, the damage was already done as the home side never recovered from 46 all-out and lost the match by 8-wickets, to go behind in the series.

Before the start of the second Test match, R Ashwin spoke to the official broadcaster and dropped a huge bombshell by stating that India were perhaps overconfident as they underestimated the visiting New Zealand side.

"Obviously, it all depends on where we stand, particularly in that series, in terms of how you are bowling and how you go about your business. You will make small tweaks. There is a certain blueprint for how you want to bowl. What kind of footage do I watch? I do revisit my own performance after each day or match. The understanding of what can be done better is, obviously improved with time and with every single game. That is how it works."

"The game humbles you whenever you think you are invincible (chuckles). The issue with playing in a country like India is massive because every venue has a different prerequisite. For example, in some venues, there is hardly anything for overspin. Bengaluru is one of the places where you don't have much for overspin. You must identify things quickly and execute them in volume," Ashwin further added.

KL Rahul dropped alongside Siraj and Kuldeep

At the toss time, Rohit Sharma announced that they have dropped KL Rahul, Mohammed Siraj and Kuldeep Yadav for the second Test match. The trio had a poor puting in the Bengaluru game and faced the wrath of the team management.

Instead, Akash Deep, and Washington Sundar gets a chance with Shubman Gill making his return to the side. The number 3 batter missed out on the last Test due to a neck sprain, but is fit for the all-important Pune game.

With Gill coming back and Sarfaraz Khan performing exceedingly well, the coach/captain duo of Gautam Gambhir and Rohit Sharma decided to remove KL Rahul from the playing XI.