New Zealand's captain Tom Latham poses with the trophy after winnng the third Test cricket match against India at Wankhede Stadium, in Mumbai on Sunday. (PTI Photo)
Mumbai: Skipper Tom Latham's joy knew no bounds after leading New Zealand to historic 3-0 clean sweep over India in the three-match Test series, saying his players rose to occasion by being aggressive with the bat and proactive with the ball.
India faced a humiliating 0-3 defeat at home for the first time ever after losing the third Test by 25 runs. Set a target of 147, India were all out for 121.
“Very very ecstatic. Looking back at the start of the series and to be in this position, boys have done a very good job and to finally to do it here in Mumbai, we were challenged with bat and ball. Very happy,” Latham said at the post-match presentation ceremony.
“Just being able to adapt to each ground. There is no one way of doing things - the seamers did the job in Bangalore, different guys stood up at different times. More contributions we were looking for.
“Last week it was Mitch (Mitchell), this time it was Ajaz (Patel). We wanted to come here and try and fire a few shots. Tried to be aggressive with the bat, be proactive and with the ball, keep it simple.”
New Zealand came into the series after losing 0-2 to Sri Lanka in an away rubber, but Latham said they didn't play badly against Islanders.
“I don't think we played all that bad over there. Fell on the right side of the toss in these conditions and put enough runs on the board. When you are chasing a target on a tricky wicket, it is important to have runs on the board.”
He also lauded New Zealand women's team for winning the recently-concluded T20 World Cup.
“Girls winning the World Cup was fantastic, being in this position, we can only brag once we get to this position,” Latham said.
Player-of-the-match Ajaz Patel, who returned with a rich match haul of 11 for 160, said he just focussed on exploiting the pitch and was confident of tossing the ball up, which paid dividends.
“Spin bowling is about rhythm. When you are in rhythm it is about making the most of it. I felt confident even in the morning session (on day two) but the wicket did not offer me much.
“After lunch I got the confidence to toss it up and use my guile. He's (Pant) batted phenomenally throughout the series, I had to think out of the box and made sure to come up with a new plan and stay ahead of him,” he said.
Will Young was named player-of-the-series for his 244 runs in the three matches.
“One win was huge but to go again and again was huge. I tried to keep it simple, at times I need to trust my defence and at times I need to work out where I want to score,” he said.
“Memories with the boys we have created with the boys. We go back and enjoy each other's company.”
( Source : PTI )
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