With an Everest-like victory over India in the second Test in Pune, New Zealand made history. In addition to ending India’s 18-Test series win record, the visitors’ victory sealed the series 2-0 with one game remaining.
From the first day, the weather in Pune has been bright and sunny, in contrast to Bengaluru’s cloudy conditions. In a track that was susceptible to spin, the team captained by Tom Latham won the toss and decided to bat first. Just before the end of the first day, the tourists were bundled out for 259 pounds. Rachin Ravindra scored 65 and 76 runs, respectively, and Devon Conway made significant contributions with the bat for the Kiwis.
Washington Sundar was the Indian player who used the pitch effectively and performed a trick with the ball. The wickets taken by the off-spinner were seven. With three crucial wickets, his older teammate Ravichandran Ashwin also contributed. In the last hours of the day, the hosts lost the vital wicket of Indian captain Rohit Sharma and finished at 16/1.
When they batted again the following day, they were beaten for 156 and were behind by 103 runs. It was Mitchell Santner who took seven wickets for the BlackCaps. When New Zealand batted for the second time in the match, they appeared certain that they could overcome their lead. This time, the captain, Latham, took the initiative to help the team score some important runs. Before Washington Sundar ejected the southpaw, he scored 86.
Even though the visitors were losing wickets one after the other, the vital stand made by Glenn Phillips and Tom Blundell allowed the visitors gain a sizable lead over the hosts. After being bowled out for 255, the team presented the Men in Blue with a formidable 359-run target.
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Although the hosts had a fantastic batting start, they continued to lose wickets quickly after. Despite India’s presence till the midway point, the Kiwi spinners, led by Santner, continued to put the opposition under constant strain and ultimately triumphed by a commanding 113 runs.
Talking Points
1. Ashwin, Jadeja’s rare failure on home soil
India’s senior spin combination of Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja’s poor performance was one of the main talking points of the match. Ashwin took five wickets in all, three in the first innings and two in the second. Meanwhile, his partner was wicketless in the first but returned with three in the second. Since the hosts have relied on their senior players for a considerable amount of time, an off day might be seen as an uncommon occurrence. They still ended up losing, though, despite this.
2. Rohit-Virat poor form
Both captain Rohit Sharma and star batsman Virat Kohli had a lacklustre batting performance. Rohit, who has been struggling with form, was unable to settle into a groove during the match. However, Kohli lost his wicket as a result of several bad shots. Additionally, during the pivotal moments of the game, Rohit made some bad choices when it came to field placements and bowler rotation.
3. New Zealand’s all-round performance
In the second Test of the three-match series, the visitor’s overall performance was decisive. On the spin-friendly wicket, the bowlers performed admirably, but the Kiwi hitters also executed their shots and successfully repelled India’s bowling attack. Latham, in the meantime, placed the home team under constant pressure by making some wise decisions and setting up an aggressive pitch.
Who Said What?
Losing skipper, Rohit Sharma said:
Disappointing. It’s not what we expected. Got to give credit to NZ – they played better than us. We failed to capitalise on certain moments. We failed to respond to those challenges. And we sit here today. Didn’t think we batted well enough to get runs on the board. You’ve got to pick 20 wickets to win, yes, but batters have to put runs on the board. Was a great fightback to restrict them to 250-odd but we knew it was going to be challenging. When they started off, they were 200/3 and for us to come back and get them bowled out for 259 was a great effort. Wasn’t a pitch where a lot was happening.
We just didn’t bat well enough. Things would’ve been slightly different had we got a bit closer in the first innings. We want to show up well at Wankhede and try and win that Test. It’s a collective failure. I’m not somebody who would blame just the batters or the bowlers. We will come out with better intent, better ideas and better methods at Wankhede.
Winning skipper, Tom Latham said:
Really special feeling. Proud to be in this position. Whole team effort and a clear example of everyone pitching in. When you come over here you want to put your best foot forward. Putting runs on the board at the start was really important. Have to mention Mitch Santner. He was fantastic. Has been around the group a long time, and to finally get a break and bowl the way he has – credit to him. It was about trying to stick to our basics and play the long game. Both surfaces have been different, we’ve needed to adapt and we’ve done that very well.
The method we played with last night – to put ourselves on the front foot – was terrifc. The way GP played this morning was really important. We knew India were going to come out hot. Didn’t realise they were going to come that hot, but we managed to get the breakthroughs in the middle session. Those last two wickets took an age but when Tim took that catch we were really happy.
Player of the Match, Mitchell Santner said:
Not really (bowled differently in second innings?). Felt a little harder this time. Credit to India for the way they came out. That was the best way on that wicket. We were just hanging in. My side’s a bit sore. 20-odd overs in a row. I guess in that kind of situation you just want to keep going. Everytime I got a wicket it felt a little better. Nice to contribute to the team.
Winning a series over here is very tough. Obviously very pleasing for us. Everytime you take wickets you feel confident. Landing the ball in the same spot all the time with little changes in pace – that’s what we try and do as a spin unit.
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