New Zealand has achieved a remarkable feat in the world of cricket, becoming only the sixth visiting team to defeat India in a bilateral series on Indian soil in the sport’s longest format. This historic victory occurred during New Zealand’s 13th visit to India, a journey where they have previously only managed to secure two Test victories. Their last triumph before this series was way back in November 1988.
India’s loss to New Zealand has ended their staggering home series winning streak, which spanned 18 consecutive series. This dominant run began after India’s last defeat at home, which occurred in the 2012/13 season when England won a four-Test rubber, 2-1. India’s series win locomotive had surpassed any previous record, beating Australia’s ten series wins from 1994/95 to 2000/01 and again from 2004 to 2008/09, which were the previous best.
Notably, India has not lost the first two Tests of a home series since they faced South Africa back in the 1999/00 season, marking this series with New Zealand as an anomaly that will be remembered for years to come.
Moreover, this defeat marked only the third instance in history where India has suffered three or more Test losses at home in a calendar year. Previously, they lost four home matches in 1969 — three against Australia and one against New Zealand. Additionally, in 1983, India lost three home Tests against the West Indies. Adding to this year’s series loss against New Zealand was an earlier defeat to England in Hyderabad.
Rohit Sharma, India’s captain, has also faced personal setbacks with this series, recording his fourth defeat in 15 home Tests at the helm. This number puts him joint second for home Test defeats as an Indian captain, along with Kapil Dev and Mohammad Azharuddin, while the list is topped by MAK Pataudi with nine defeats.
A key architect of New Zealand’s victory was bowler Mitchell Santner, who delivered a sensational performance. His match figures of 13/157, with incredible innings figures of 7/53 and 6/104, stand as the third-best for a New Zealand bowler.
. Only Richard Hadlee’s legendary 15/123 against Australia at the Gabba in 1985 and Ajaz Patel’s 14/224 against India at the Wankhede Stadium three years ago surpass these numbers.
Santner’s achievement placed him among an elite group of bowlers, becoming only the third to claim 13 wickets or more against India in a Test match. He follows in the footsteps of Ajaz Patel and England’s Ian Botham, both of whom achieved similar feats at the Wankhede Stadium over the years. Santner also became only the second New Zealand spinner to secure five-wicket hauls in both innings of a Test match, a distinction previously held by Daniel Vettori in 2000 and 2004 against Australia and Bangladesh, respectively.
In a match dominated by spinners, a staggering 37 wickets were claimed by spin bowlers—tying the record for the most in a contest on Indian soil. This achievement mirrors the statistics from a historic match between the same two sides in Nagpur in 1969, which was also New Zealand’s first-ever Test win in India. Worldwide, there have only been two instances where spinners have accounted for more wickets: 38 in the Sri Lanka versus England Test in Pallekele in 2018, and another 38 in the Bangladesh versus Afghanistan Test in Chattogram in 2019.
This match represented one of just eight occasions in cricket history where two spinners claimed 10-wicket hauls. Santner’s 13/157 was paired with Indian spinner Washington Sundar’s notable 11/115. The last occurrence of such an event happened in Galle in 2008 during a match featuring Ajantha Mendis and Harbhajan Singh.
Washington Sundar’s 11/115 will be remembered as the second-best match figures for an Indian player in a lost cause. The best remains Javagal Srinath’s 13/132 against Pakistan during the Asian Test Championship in 1999.
Amidst these individual achievements and records, India’s Yashasvi Jaiswal achieved a landmark of his own, breaking the record for most runs by an Indian in a calendar year. Scoring 1,056 runs, he surpassed a milestone set by Gundappa Viswanath, who hit 1,047 runs in 1979—a year that also saw Indian legends Sunil Gavaskar and Viswanath crossing the 1,000-run mark in home tests.
This series between New Zealand and India will be remembered not just for the statistical milestones it shattered but also for the sportsmanship and thrilling cricket that was on display throughout, adding another chapter to the storied cricketing history shared by these nations.