![Shreyas Iyer matches unwanted captaincy record [Source: AFP]](https://onecricketnews.akamaized.net/parth-editor/oc-dashboard/news-images-prod/1794572181102_ShreyasIyerIndiaNewZealand.jpg?type=hq)
Shreyas Iyer matches unwanted captaincy record [Source: AFP]
Shreyas Iyer lost his first match as ODI captain after New Zealand crushed India in the 4th ODI held at Bay Oval in Mount Maunganui. With this, he set an unwanted record that tarnished his captaincy record.
The fourth ODI began with New Zealand setting a total of 333 runs. While the chase looked difficult, the men in blue collapsed like no one ever imagined. Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Shreyas Iyer were back in the pavilion in the first over itself.
Shreyas Iyer registers unwanted captaincy record
From 0/3, India could never really recover. Ishan Kishan, Axar Patel and Naman Dhir scored 20-odd runs, but it was never enough as wickets kept falling at an accelerated rate.
India eventually got bowled out for just 89 runs, thus losing the important contest by 244 runs. That marked Shreyas Iyer’s first loss as ODI captain.
He has now joined Virat Kohli and Shubman Gill to become the third Indian captain to lose both his first T20I and ODI as India's captain. Earlier, when Iyer was appointed as full-time T20I captain, India lost to Ireland.
Notably, Shreyas Iyer was the stand-in captain in the 4th ODI between India and New Zealand. Shubman Gill was released from the squad after the third ODI to focus on preparation for the upcoming Test series. Hence, Iyer took his place but failed badly.
Shreyas Iyer blames pitch after India’s humiliating loss
Meanwhile, after India’s 244-run defeat against New Zealand, Shreyas Iyer blamed the pitch. He believed the pitch behaved differently when India came out to bat.
New Zealand scored 333 in the first innings, which made the surface look good for batting. However, during India's chase, the ball started moving in and out, making batting considerably more difficult.
"When we got into the dressing room, we thought that we would be cruising through the chase as well. But the way the ball was seaming in and out, you couldn't basically decide from inside that this is how I'm going to play. Or even if you saw the wickets, no one threw the wicket away. It was good deliveries," Iyer said.
Shreyas Iyer also clarified that the batters didn’t throw away their wickets at any stage. However, head coach Gautam Gambhir expressed concern, saying the pitch wasn’t bad enough for such a collapse.
