India were skittled out for a record-low Test score of 46 against New Zealand in Bengaluru days after head coach Gautam Gambhir had criticised the country’s "batsman-obsessed attitude".
After day one was washed out without a ball being bowled, New Zealand seamers breathed fire on a helpful M. Chinnaswamy surface to bowl India out for 46, their third-lowest total ever in Test cricket. It was also their lowest at home, breaking the unwanted record set against the West Indies (75) in Delhi in 1987.
As many as five batters – Virat Kohli, Sarfaraz Khan, KL Rahul, Ravindra Jadeja and R Ashwin – registered ducks, with only Yashasvi Jaiswal (13) and Rishabh Pant (20) reaching double-digit scores. India narrowly escaped from matching their record of most number of ducks (6) in an innings, which came against England in 2014 and South Africa in 2024.
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India's record collapse comes days after head coach Gambhir emphasised the importance of bowlers in winning matches, calling for an end to the batter "obsessed" mindset.
"That era is past. This is the era of bowlers. Batters only set up matches. This batsman-obsessed attitude of ours needs to end. If a batter even scores 1,000 runs, it doesn't guarantee victory. But if a bowler takes 20 wickets, then there is a 99 per cent guarantee that we will win the Test match," Gambhir stated in a press conference before the start of the first Test.
He added: "So if it is a Test match or any other format, bowlers win you matches and tournaments. In this era, we will talk more about bowlers compared to batters, and I hope this mindset changes."
It’s worth noting that India’s breathtaking win in Kanpur against Bangladesh recently, came under Gambhir’s tenure. After 35 overs were bowled in the first three days owing to inclement weather, India still managed to force a result in their favour. That was possible largely because of a blazing batting display in which the hosts struck the quickest 50, 100 and 200 in the history of the format.
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