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Former India cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar has played down the magnitude of India's embarrassing 2-1 defeat in the recently concluded ODI series against New Zealand. The Kiwis scripted history by pulling off their maiden ODI series victory on Indian soil after beating Shubman Gill & Co. by 41 runs in the third ODI in Indore on Sunday.
After suffering their maiden Test series defeat against New Zealand at home in 2024 and losing their first Test series against South Africa at home after 25 years in 2025, India hit a new low under head coach Gautam Gambhir after their ODI series loss against the Kiwis. However, Manjrekar said the defeat against New Zealand is 'no big deal'.
Explaining his take, the former India batter said the series defeat didn't matter in the larger scheme of things as the World Cup is the only relevant competition in the ODI format. Manjrekar argued no one remembers Champions Trophy winners, but World Cup remains the pinnacle.
"India losing to New Zealand in the ODI series recently, no big deal. Honestly, in 50-over cricket today, what really matters is the World Cup, not even the Champions Trophy, because if you try and remember the last three Champions Trophy winners, you’ll struggle to remember those. But World Cup, you’ll remember each winner from the time the tournament started," Manjrekar wrote on Instagram.
Manjrekar's comments come amid debate surrounding the relevance of ODIs in modern-day cricket. Many believe the importance of the fifty-over format has reduced with the rise of T20 cricket around the globe. Recently, Manjrekar sparked controversy by stating that Virat Kohli retired from Tests and T20Is to continue playing ODIs, which he feels is the 'easiest format'.
Both Kohli and Rohit Sharma, who have already retired from Tests and T20Is, continue to feature for India only in ODIs. The senior duo will return to action for India next when the Men in Blue play their next ODI series. India are expected to return to ODI action against Afghanistan in June this year.
Afghanistan are scheduled to tour India for a three-match ODI series in June, however, the official dates and final schedule of the series are yet to be announced. India will then head to England in July to play three ODIs and a five-match T20I series against the hosts.
