MS Dhoni has laid the blame for India’s shock 47-run loss to New Zealand in the opening World Twenty20 group match in Nagpur at his batsmen’s door.

India’s batsmen folded at the hands of New Zealand’s spinners, recording just 79 runs in 18.1 overs. It is their lowest ever T20 score on home soil as they tried to chase 126 for victory.

India’s previous lowest total at home was 92 against South Africa in Cuttack last year.

‘I thought we restricted them to a good total [but] the batting let us down, the shot selection kept putting pressure on the batsmen coming in and there was no partnership in the middle,’ Dhoni said.

‘They bowled well, exploited the conditions, but we lacked adaptability, we could have applied ourselves a bit more.’

New Zealand coach Mike Hesson downplayed expectations after his team’s win. The Black Caps coach described the atmosphere in India as ‘chaos’ but a man known for a measured personalty wasn’t getting carried away by the 47-run win.

Asked if New Zealand could take the title, he said: ‘It’s far too early for that…just getting out of the pool will be incredibly difficult.’