'The uncomfortable truth': Indian warning for 'appalling' Black Caps

The hits keep coming for the Black Caps following their 3-0 series defeat in Australia.

They've been described as playing their 'best cricket when nobody's watching' by an Indian writer who has questioned their number two ranking held on the eve on the Australian tour.

Writing for cricbuzz.com, Bharat Sundaresan has suggested there's an 'uncomfortable truth' about Kane Williamson's test side.

"To start with, every neutral fan's favourite team in the world have not just been humbled and whitewashed over the last four weeks or so, they have been completely shredded to bits. While losing all three Tests within four days, they weren't just poor or disappointing. They were appalling."

The Black Caps went to Australia sitting second in the test rankings following an impressive run built off a strong record at home.

"Though this isn't to take anything away from their achievement, their ascent during a period when they didn't face Australia or India, home or away, and didn't have to tour South Africa. The three teams basically, who they simply haven't managed to compete against or even push to any great extent in recent years. The numbers again are rather glaring," Sundaresan writes.

"Since 2010 (including current the rout Down Under), the Kiwis have faced their three bugbear opponents in 32 Tests and won only twice - one each against India and Australia and none against the South Africans - while losing 21 times, both home and away. While Test cricket in general does have rather skewed head-to-heads when it comes to teams' records away from their backyard, New Zealand's record are nothing short of staggering, especially as a team that travelled across the Tasman ranked one spot from the top."

The Black Caps have now lost eight of their last nine tests against Australia since the 2011 Hobart victory - their one win from their last 31 tests on Aussie soil.

The 3-0 series defeat leaves New Zealand in fifth on the World Test Championship on 60 points, whoever England could leapfrog them with a victory in Cape Town tomorrow.

Their next series is against the world's top ranked side and World Test Championship leaders India.

India and New Zealand last met in 2016 in the subcontinent, in shades of the just-completed Australian series, the Black Caps lost all three tests and failed to reach 300 in all six innings.

However history proves we could expect a New Zealand bounceback when the two-test series begins on February 21.

It's been quite a while since India last donned the whites in New Zealand where they have struggled. Their last test series was in 2014, a 1-0 series win for the Black Caps highlighted by Brendon McCullum's 302 as part of a 352 partnership with BJ Watling which saved the second test, and series, in Wellington.

India have won just five of their 23 tests in New Zealand, however three of those were during their first tour in 1968. They've won just one test in their last 19 tests in New Zealand, a 10 wicket victory at Seddon Park in 2009.