India lose 3rd Test by 25 runs to New Zealand, suffer first 0-3 whitewash at home
Mumbai (PTI): India faced a humiliating 0-3 whitewash at home for the first time ever after suffering a 25-run defeat in the third Test against New Zealand here on Sunday.
New Zealand had ended India's 12-year unbeaten home run in Tests by winning the first two matches. It is also their first-ever series victory in India since they started touring the country in 1955-56 under Harry Cave.
The Black Caps also scripted history by becoming the first team to notch a 3-0 series win in India.
Having dismissed New Zealand for 174 at the beginning of the first session on day three courtesy Ravindra Jadeja's five-wicket haul, India needed 147 runs to pick up a consolation win here.
However, the home team suffered yet another inexplicable batting collapse as the Kiwi spinners, led by Ajaz Patel, ran through the Indian line-up.
Patel, who took a five-for in the first innings, added six more to take his match haul to 11 wickets.
Rishabh Pant (64) led a monumental fightback but the wicketkeeper batter was caught behind shortly after lunch to deflate all hopes of an Indian victory.
Brief Scores:
New Zealand 235 and 174 all out in 45.5 overs (Will Young 51; Ravindra Jadeja 5/55, R Ashwin 3/63).
India: 263 and 121 all out in 29.1 overs (Rishabh Pant 64; Ajaz Patel 6/57).
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Sanjay Raut demands re-election, alleges irregularities in EVMs during Maharashtra polls
Mumbai, Nov 25: Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Monday demanded a re-election in Maharashtra using ballot papers, claiming there were irregularities with the electronic voting machines (EVMs).
Talking to reporters, Raut alleged several complaints about EVMs malfunctioning and questioned the integrity of the recently held elections.
The BJP-led Mahayuti won 230 out of 288 seats in the assembly elections, while the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi managed 46 seats, with Shiv Sena (UBT) winning just 20 out of 95 seats it contested.
"We have received nearly 450 complaints regarding EVMs. Despite raising objections repeatedly, no action has been taken on these issues. How can we say these elections were conducted fairly? Hence, I demand that the results be set aside and elections be held again using ballot papers," Raut said.
Citing some instances, he said a candidate in Nashik reportedly received only four votes despite having 65 votes from his family, while in Dombivli, discrepancies were found in EVM tallies, and election officials refused to acknowledge the objections.
The Sena (UBT) leader also questioned the credibility of the landslide victories of some candidates, saying, "What revolutionary work have they done to receive more than 1.5 lakh votes? Even leaders who recently switched parties have become MLAs. This raises suspicions. For the first time, a senior leader like Sharad Pawar has expressed doubts about EVMs, which cannot be ignored."
Asked about the MVA's poor performance in the elections, Raut rejected the idea of blaming a single individual.
"We fought as a united MVA. Even a leader like Sharad Pawar, who commands immense respect in Maharashtra, faced defeat. This shows that we need to analyse the reasons behind the failure. One of the reasons is EVM irregularities and the misuse of the system, unconstitutional practices, and even judicial decisions left unresolved by Justice Chandrachud," he said.
Raut stressed that though internal differences might have existed within the MVA, the failure was collective.
He also accused the Mahayuti of conducting the elections in an unfair manner.
"I cannot call the elections fair given the numerous reports of discrepancies in EVMs, mismatched numbers, and vote irregularities across the state," Raut said.
