New Zealand thrash India 5-0 in Auckland as Khalid Jamil’s side struggle again

India suffered a heavy 5-0 defeat to New Zealand in their first international friendly at Go Media Stadium in Auckland on Thursday. The result raises more questions over the Blue Tigers’ form against stronger teams.

The afternoon went wrong almost immediately. In the fifth minute, defender Bijoy Varghese turned the ball into his own net, and the hosts never looked back. Jesse Randall scored twice and captain Chris Wood also found the net, so India trailed 3-0 at half-time. Lachlan Bayliss added the fifth after the break.

Khalid Jamil had picked a changed squad for the tour and left Gurpreet Singh Sandhu out. Vishal Kaith started in goal and Anirudh Thapa wore the armband. Ryan Williams, Liston Colaco and Manvir Singh led the attack.

At half-time, Jamil made five changes. Jay Gupta, Lalrinliana Hnamte, Mehtab Singh, Ricky Meetei Haobam and Muhammad Suhail came on, with Haobam and Suhail making their India debuts. The changes did little to slow New Zealand, who controlled the second half as well.

Before the tour, Jamil had described the hosts as a strong World Cup-playing nation and said the games would be a good test away from home. The gap between the sides was clear. India are ranked 138th in the world, while New Zealand, who played at the 2026 World Cup, are ranked 88th.

The defeat also extends a worrying run. Across four recent friendlies against Panama, Brazil, Uruguay and now New Zealand, India have scored only two goals and conceded 16. The matches were meant to measure the team against World Cup-level opposition, and so far the results have shown how far India still have to go.

There was also history in Auckland, though not the kind India wanted. It was the national team’s first-ever match on New Zealand soil and their first trip to an OFC country in two decades.

Jamil has only a few days to respond. The two teams meet again on Sunday, November 15, at One New Zealand Stadium in Christchurch, with kick-off at 8:30 AM IST. Fans will want to see a better defensive performance and more belief from the Blue Tigers.