After a 14-wicket first day, as many as 15 wickets fell on Day 2 of the final Test between India and New Zealand. The game moved quick and fast as 13 of those wickets were taken by spinners. In fact, spinners from both sides ran riot as the Wankhede pitch aided them.
Starting the day under a bit of pressure at 90/4, Rishabh Pant combined excellently with Shubman Gill to resurrect the innings. Pant started the day with three boundaries off Ajaz Patel in the very first over of the day. Gill who was batting on 31 overnight rotated strike very nicely before he was dropped on 45 by substitute Mark Chapman. He soon brought up his 7th Test half-century.
At the other end, Pant continued to go after the bowling as he got a flurry of boundaries, including a couple of sixes. He notched up his fifty (13th in Test cricket) in just 36 balls. While there was turn and bounce and the New Zealand spinners beat the bat a few times, India were cruising along nicely.
In fact, they scored 77 runs in the first 14 overs of the day before Pant was dropped soon after the first drinks break. However, that didn’t cost much as Ish Sodhi trapped him in front. Pant reviewed the decision but it was just clipping leg-stump.
Jadeja joined Gill in the middle but the former was dismissed soon after lunch for 14. Sarfaraz Khan didn’t last long either as Ajaz got one to turn sharply and Sarfaraz nicked it to the keeper. On either side of those wickets, Gill struck a few boundaries before he eventually edged to slip. The India No. 3 was out for 90 and missed out on a well-deserved ton.
When Gill got out, India were still eight runs behind with two wickets in hand. That’s when Washington Sundar hit a few lusty blows to drag India to 263. He got 38 off 36 balls (four fours and two sixes) which helped India to a handy 28-run lead.
Jadeja, Ashwin share seven wickets as India keep New Zealand’s lead to 143
In reply, New Zealand lost Tom Latham in the first over of the second innings. Akash Deep bowled the Blackcaps skipper through the gate with a delivery that jagged back in. Devon Conway got a start while Will Young looked solid at the other end.
Sundar gave India their second breakthrough as he had Conway edging to second slip. Rachin Ravindra who started the series beautifully was outfoxed by Ravichandran Ashwin. At 44/3, New Zealand were in trouble.
However, the half-centurions from the first innings (Mitchell and Young) shared a vital 50-run stand for the fourth wicket. The Indian spinners troubled them by going past the edge but both batters found a way to survive and accumulate runs. Jadeja broke the partnership as Mitchell holed out with Ashwin taking a brilliant running catch.
Tom Blundell was knocked over by the Saurashtra left-arm spinning all-rounder for just 4. New Zealand lost half their side with their lead reading just 73. However, Glenn Phillips came out all guns blazing. He hit three sixes and one four in his breezy knock of 26 off 14 balls. It was Ashwin who castled him with a superb carrom ball.
Young then hit a couple of boundaries to bring up his second fifty of the match. Just when it seemed he was adding some valuable runs with Sodhi, the latter was dismissed and Young fell soon after. Henry and Patel struck a couple of blows towards the end before Jadeja knocked over Henry to end the day on a high.
New Zealand are 143 runs ahead with just one wicket in hand. The experienced Indian spin duo of Ashwin and Jadeja finally turned up in this Test match to give the hosts the edge. Jadeja who took 5/65 in the first innings currently has four in the second. Ashwin chipped away and picked up three scalps.
On a pitch which is turning and has variable bounce, chasing this score will not be easy. India will need to bat well in order to gain crucial World Test Championship (WTC) points.
BRIEF SCORES: New Zealand 235 and 171/9 (Will Young 51, Glenn Phillips 26, Ravindra Jadeja 4/52, Ravichandran Ashwin 3/63) lead India 263 (Shubman Gill 90, Rishabh Pant 60, Ajaz Patel 5/103, Matt Henry 1/26) by 143 runs.
