'Even if we had won the New Zealand series 3-0, it would have meant little because the conditions in Australia are very different, and the team there is very different.'
'In Australia, you just go with a clean slate and start fresh. It doesn't matter what has happened on the previous page.'
India's unexpected Test series defeat to New Zealand has stunned the Indian cricket universe.
Former Indian women's captain and commentator Anjum Chopra dissects the team's performance, highlighting the glaring batting failures that led to the series defeat in a conversation with Rediff.com's Laxmi Negi.
Rishabh Pant was fantastic with the bat against New Zealand. He played a memorable knock in Brisbane in the last series. How crucial will he be in this series in Australia?
Well, this time as well, the memories for Rishabh will be very sweet for obvious reasons. He will play a very crucial role. But it's not just him -- everyone has an important role to play. It's not going to be about one or two people standing up; there will be many.
Australia is a quality team, so Rishabh and everyone's role in their own capacity will be the key.
K L Rahul or Sarfaraz Khan: Who should bat in the middle order?
The BCCI has asked K L Rahul to travel to Australia before the India team does, so there is obviously a thought process about who is a better fit between the two.
It's a long Test series, not just about one or two Tests, but five Test matches. You need players in form, and you also need the conditions to be familiar to the players. The more options there are, the better it is. So, the more the merrier.
It's not just about either/or, but about having more players who are accustomed to Australian conditions.
Do you believe Virat Kohli has it in him to bounce back in Australia where he has always done well?
Virat Kohli is a quality player. Let's not doubt his credentials or skills because we all know what kind of player he is.
Yes, the recent few games have not gone his way, or he hasn't been at his best, but the moment he is faced with a different challenge in a different country, I am sure he will turn things around.
He is important to the Indian team and he is also aware of the fact that his knock is crucial for India.
So, I am sure the Australians will be planning for Virat Kohli to come out hard at them.
Yes, he will play a very crucial role and he will be successful.
Given that India hadn't lost a home Test series to New Zealand in 91 years, what do you think contributed most to this series loss?
There has already been a lot of analysis regarding the reasons for the loss.
Personally, I feel that it was a collective failure with the bat.
The bowlers did their job, but the batters were unable to deliver in crunch moments. Of course, a few decisions didn't go their way, but in totality, the batting could have been the department where India could have done much better, but they didn't.
The series is behind us now. New Zealand has gone home, and they are celebrating, while the Indian team is preparing for the next series, so yes, we have lost the series, but it's time to move on.
How much do you think the pitch and home conditions played a part in India's performance, and what adjustments should the team have made to benefit more from familiar settings?
To identify each and every analysis of what they should have done, I guess, as I said earlier, it's all in the past. We, as a team, could have learned what could have been done differently. Nobody likes to lose, nobody likes to not score runs or take wickets.
Yes, it was a collective inability for the team to be on the winning side -- not just to lose a match but to lose the series.
A series loss hurts badly, but at the end of the day, the team will realise that we are not invincible at home, and that conditions are not as alien to others anymore.
Everybody knows Indian conditions now better than before, so caution becomes a very important word, and awareness of the opposition is crucial.
The Indian team must be prepared for that, and I'm sure when India plays its next home game, there will be a significant difference in the approach and everything around it.
In your view, were there any tactical missteps or selection decisions that might have impacted the team's performance throughout the series?
Regarding comments on tactical decisions, I didn't watch every ball that was bowled in the Test matches. I was covering the women's World Cup and the women's home series, so I was watching off and on. I won't comment on the tactical part.
If Rohit says he made certain decisions that didn't go his way, then we back our captain and trust what he says. He is an experienced campaigner and a World Cup winner.
If he says things didn't go his way, we accept that and move on. It really doesn't matter what happened; we can't change it. What we can change is what happens in the future.
If certain decisions didn't work in the team's favour, then we need to figure out how to improve and take better decisions when facing the next opposition, whether at home or away.
I'm sure Rohit will evaluate and discuss it with the team, the management, and the players. Everyone is an experienced player, so they know exactly how to come out of this situation.
How would you compare this Indian team's approach and performance in home series to some of the teams from previous decades? What's changed, if anything?
It's a very vast question -- what has changed, what didn't?
I don't sit with eras or compare generations. Not everything is about what went wrong.
There may have been moments in the Test matches where something went right -- (Ravindra) Jadeja's spell was definitely a plus, and Akash Deep's spell was a definite plus.
But I'm definitely not sitting down and making a list of the good and not-so-good things. The team management is doing that.
As a supporter, we want our team to win, but I'm not comparing this team to earlier teams. The loss hasn't gone down well with any of us or the supporters, and why wouldn't it? We are in the contest to win, not to lose.
I'm sure things will turn around for the Indian team in the near future.
Do you think the leadership approach and preparation strategies were on point, or could certain areas of the team's preparation have been handled differently?
I am not aware of the team's preparations, what they did in the net sessions, and things like that. Those are personal practice sessions that nobody gets invited to. But I'm sure the team prepared to suit their individual plans and game plans.
Everyone prepares individually, and then they come into a training camp where they practice collectively. So, I wouldn't be able to comment on whether they practiced adequately or not, and it doesn't really need to go there.
Individually, everyone would be aware of what they missed, what they lacked, and what the missing link is. They will need to work on those areas to have a more complete picture.
What impact do you foresee this series loss having on the team's morale and confidence going forward, especially as they approach the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series?
There is a bit of a break, and it's nice that the players have gone back to their respective homes. They will come back refreshed by the time they regroup for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
They will have time to reflect and work on their skill levels, and they will have conversations with their individual coaches or whoever they interact with to iron out whatever they need to work on.
So, it's okay. The loss does hurt, but you have to move on.
Even if we had won the series 3-0, it would have meant little because the conditions in Australia are very different, and the team there is very different.
Win or loss, it does make a difference, but in Australia, you just go with a clean slate and start fresh. It doesn't matter what has happened on the previous page.
