"I wasn’t at my best": Rohit Sharma blames himself for India's humiliating Test series loss to NZ

India captain Rohit Sharma opened up on his team's shocking defeat at the hands of New Zealand in the three-match Test series. Rohit was visibly disappointed with the performance and claimed that India didn't play well collectively during the whole series.

Rohit Sharma's own performance will be under the scanner now. The Indian captain failed to get going during this series. India needed its captain to take them over the line on this day but Rohit was dismissed for another low score.

It is the first time ever that India has been clean-swept in a Test series of three or more matches at home. It is a shocking result for a team that has been so dominating at home over the last few years.

Also read: 'Sack Rohit, Gambhir and retire Kohli': Furious fans react to India's shocking 'Blackwash' vs NZ

Rohit Sharma opens up on India's dismal performance

During the post-match presentation, Rohit Sharma was asked various tough questions about this shocking defeat. The Indian skipper accepted that India did not play at its best and New Zealand were a lot better.

"Losing a series, losing a Test is never easy, it's something that's not easily digestible. Again, we didn't play our best cricket, we know and we have to accept. They (New Zealand) did so much better than us throughout the series. We made a lot of mistakes and we'll have to accept it," Rohit stated.

India's batting was one of the main reasons behind the team's decline in this series. Rohit Sharma accepted it and mentioned that the batters didn't put runs on the board in any of the Test matches. He added the target in the Mumbai Test was also achievable but the batter let them down again.

"We didn't put enough runs on the board in the 1st innings (in Bengaluru and Pune) and we were very much behind in the game, here, we got a 30-run lead, we thought we were ahead, the target was achievable as well, all we had to do was a bit application which we failed to do," he added.

India needed 147 runs to win the Mumbai Test after bundling out New Zealand for 174 earlier in the day. But the same problem occurred again as the team lost wickets in clusters. India lost half of their side for just 29 runs, which put New Zealand ahead in the match.

Rohit Sharma speaks on his own form

When asked about his own batting form, Rohit Sharma claimed that he has his own ideas when he comes out to bat. He is disappointed that the shot didn't come off this series. The Indian skipper also accepted that he wasn't at his best as a player and as a captain in this series.

"That's something that was there in my mind (on his own batting today), it didn't come off and when it happens, it doesn't look great. There are certain ideas, certain plans on my mind when I go to bat, but in this series, it didn't come off and that's disappointing for me," Rohit explained.

"From a personal point of view, I wasn't at my best with both bat and as a captain, that's something that'll rankle me. But, we didn't perform well collectively and that's the reason for these losses," he added.

"Those guys showed how to bat" - Rohit Sharma lauds young Indian batters

While praising the young batters in the team, Rohit hailed the way Rishabh Pant, Yashasvi Jaiswal, and Shubman Gill have performed. He reckons that being proactive is the way to play on such surfaces.

"Those guys showed how to bat on these surfaces (on Pant, Jaiswal and Gill), you've got to be slightly ahead and be proactive when we play on a pitch like that we are playing on such pitches in the last 3-4 years, we know how to play," Rohit said.

Shubman Gill scored a magnificent 90 off 146 balls in the first innings while Rishabh Pant scored a fighting 64 off 57 balls in the second innings. Pant waged a lone battle for India but was finally dismissed in a controversial manner.

Opener Yashasvi Jaiswal too has been brilliant in his short Test career so far. India's next Test assignment is the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia. It will be a huge test for a team that will be down in confidence after this defeat.