Mumbai (India): From watching Rishabh Pant almost recreate a famous Gabba heist on home turf to Ajaz Patel etching New Zealand’s name into the history books, it was a mouth-watering spectacle of Test cricket at its best.

When the odds were stacked against New Zealand, Ajaz Patel, who has always found solace in Mumbai, the place where he was born, proved to be the difference between India’s success and demolition.

On a torrid day in Mumbai, when Rohit Sharma’s blitzkrieg faltered, Shubman Gill failed to read the line and Virat Kohli somehow got to Daryl Mitchell, the Indian team was left with a need for self-introspection.

After 12 years, India suffered a series whitewash in a home Test series only once, in 2000, after the 25-run defeat to the Kiwis.

India’s exposed skills against spin marked the first instance of New Zealand winning three Tests in a series home or away, and the first ever they have won three consecutive away Tests.

The last instance of India suffering such humiliation was against a South African side led by Hansie Cronje, India lost both matches in the two-match series.

On Day 3, when Wankhede felt quiet and heads fell in the Indian camp, Rishabh Pant became the beacon of hope, rekindling the spark of a slowly desiccated fighting spirit.

With a barrage of range and its variations, shrouded in a veil of happiness, the glimpse of India’s famous Gabba victory began to echo in Wankhede.

With Pant unleashing his fury on spinners and Ravindra Jadeja playing perfect second fiddle to the flamboyant batsman, one of the elite robberies in the history of Test cricket appeared in cards.

Even after Jadeja shifted the lead to Will Young, India’s victory was assured until Pant stayed on the edge.

But the story wasn’t the one the presenters expected. Pant, who certainly understood how the bounce and spin of his shot bounced off Patel’s sharp spin.

New Zealand appealed for a catch, but the on-field umpire rejected it. Tom Latham, in a moment of desperation, decided to trust his last assessment and asked for the decision to be taken upstairs.

Ultra Edge showed a peak when the bat hit its pad, but there was also a peak when the ball was close to the bat and there was no gap in the replay.

The third umpire decided to reverse the decision, leaving Pant in a dejected figure.

Pant’s distraught body language was visible after he bumped the door on his way to the dressing room.

The rest of the story was a collective failure of the Indian side’s batting, which had been a constant theme for the entire series.

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