In a gripping action at the MCA Stadium in Pune, New Zealand’s tour de force led by Mitchell Santner and Tom Latham placed India firmly on the back foot during the second Test. As day two drew to a close, the visiting New Zealand team had not only held their ground but extended a formidable lead over the hosts, leaving them with a significant hurdle to overcome in the coming days.
The day commenced on a promising note for India, with their young openers Shubman Gill and Yashasvi Jaiswal displaying flair by targeting boundaries with sustained aggression. Yet this promising start was short-lived. Shubman Gill’s departure was the initial crack in India’s armor, triggering a cascading collapse that the Indian batting lineup struggled to arrest. Despite Virat Kohli’s wealth of experience, an errant low full toss found its way through his defenses, drastically tilting the advantage towards the visitors. The dismissals of Sarfaraz Khan and Rishabh Pant followed in a disheartening sequence that underscored India’s struggle with poor shot selection on a tricky pitch.
Mitchell Santner was the architect of India’s downfall in the morning session, wreaking havoc among the batsmen. His skillful display not only stifled the Indian scoring but claimed pivotal wickets, sending six batsmen back to the pavilion before lunch. As India found themselves on the ropes, with stalwarts like Washington Sundar and Ravindra Jadeja the only recognized batsmen remaining, the duo attempted to forcefully mitigate the growing deficit with a counter-attacking approach.
Ravindra Jadeja’s response was particularly noteworthy, opting to play his shots decisively. Ajaz Patel faced the brunt of Jadeja’s assault momentarily, yet Santner’s relentless accuracy couldn’t be thwarted. His determination and finesse not only fetched him a remarkable five-wicket haul but eventually saw him finish with astounding figures of 7 for 53, wrapping up the Indian innings at a paltry 156.
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New Zealand, with a vital lead of just over a hundred runs in hand, set out to consolidate their advantage effectively. Their openers made an affirmative start, adding to India’s burgeoning troubles. Ravichandran Ashwin and Washington Sundar managed to claim the scalps of Devon Conway and Will Young, respectively, but Tom Latham remained unyielding at the crease, crafting a methodical innings to underscore New Zealand’s ambitions.
Anticipating the pitch to deteriorate further, New Zealand sought to accumulate runs rapidly, indicating their intent to establish a virtually unassailable position. Washington Sundar briefly provided India with hope, his dismissal of the dangerous Rachin Ravindra another critical moment in the day’s play. Yet, Daryl Mitchell, with a boundary-laden start to his innings, continued to chip away at India’s resolve.
Despite Washington’s efforts to curtail the run flow, New Zealand’s batsmen were able to counteract by consistently putting the ball to the boundary. In a testament to their dominance, New Zealand accumulated runs steadily without India managing to bowl a single maiden over in the day’s first 40 overs. Although Washington Sundar secured his 11th wicket of the series, cutting short Tom Latham’s innings at 86, Latham’s contribution had already strengthened New Zealand’s commanding position in the test.
The brief scoreboard told the tale of a day that thoroughly belonged to the visitors: New Zealand leading by 301 runs after reaching 198 for 5, with Tom Latham’s invaluable innings and Washington Sundar’s figures of 4 for 56 as the highlights. Meanwhile, India was left to rue their missed opportunities and batting failures, with their total of 156 propped up mainly by Ravindra Jadeja’s courageous 38.
As the Test progresses, India finds itself in a predicament, needing to summon their fighting spirit against a resolutely dominant New Zealand side. The visitors’ blend of disciplined bowling and judicious batting has so far kept them firmly in control, shifting the onus onto India to engineer a response capable of shifting the course of the match.