“What a toothless bowling attack throughout the T20 series” – Fans slam India for poor bowling after seven-wicket loss in NZ vs IND 2026 5th T20I

Team India suffered a seven-wicket loss in the fifth and final T20I of the series against New Zealand in Hamilton. The Kiwis made a strong comeback after the first three games to end the series with two wins.

In the fifth game, Shreyas Iyer and Co. batted first and got to 191/8. However, the total did not prove to be anywhere close to enough, as New Zealand chased it down comfortably in just 18 overs. The Men in Blue struggled to pick wickets and put the opposition batters under pressure.

Following the defeat and India’s inability to defend the total, fans slammed them on social media for their poor bowling not just in this game, but throughout the series.

“What a toothless bowling attack throughout the T20 series! You simply cannot expect your star batters to bail you out every time. If India wants to win big tournaments, it’s time to stop obsessing over batting & start building a bowling attack that can actually defend totals,” a fan tweeted on X.

Some fans even reckoned that this series exposed the overdependence on star pacer Jasprit Bumrah. The visitors certainly seemed to miss the ace pacer big time in this series.

“India currently has one of the worst bowling attack in top 5 teams. Only depending on Bumrah! @BCCI if you are only relying on Bumrah then forget 2027 World Cup,” another user wrote.

Below are some other reactions from fans on X –

In the fourth T20I that the visitors lost, they conceded 259 runs, and the batters could not chase the mammoth target down. In five matches combined, the visitors could pick up only 22 wickets.

India’s bowlers struggled throughout the series

While India may have won the five-match series 3-2, their bowlers had a tough time all the way through. Except pacer Arshdeep Singh, all bowlers had economy rates of 10 or more.

Arshdeep was the most successful with six wickets from five matches at an average of 31.50 and an economy rate of 9.45. Bhuvneshwar Kumar had a forgettable comeback. In four matches, he picked up just one wicket, giving away 180 runs at an economy rate of 11.25.

Nitish Kumar Reddy, who bowled in all five games, gave away 192 runs at an average of 48.00 and an economy rate of 11.29. Prince Yadav bowled 15 overs in four matches and conceded 158 runs at an average of 79.00 and an economy rate of 10.53.

Edited by Rishab Vm