 "IND vs NZ 1st Test Day 3: Virat Kohli falls on last ball as India trail by 125 runs")
IND vs NZ, 1st Test Day 3: Sarfaraz Khan and Virat Kohli led India’s fight back with combative half-centuries after skipper Rohit Sharma set the platform with his 52-run knock as the hosts ended day three of the opening Test against New Zealand at 231 for three Friday. Resuming the day on 180 for three, New Zealand posted 402 on the board for a massive 356-run first-innings lead with Rachin Ravindra (134) conjuring up a majestic century.
India, who were bowled out for a mere 46 in the first essay, made a confident start to their second innings with skipper Rohit and Yashasvi Jaiswal (35) producing a 72-run stand for the opening wicket.
Left-arm spinner Ajaz Patel dismissed both the openers before Kohli and Sarfaraz added 136 runs for the third wicket.
Kohli was dismissed at the fag end of the day and stumps were called right after his dismissal.
India trailed by 125 runs.
Brief Scores: India: 46 all out and 231 for 3 in 49 overs (Sarfaraz Khan 70 batting, Virat Kohli 70, Rohit Sharma 52; Ajaz Patel 2/70).
New Zealand 1st innings: 402 in 91.3 overs (Devon Conway 91, Rachin Ravindra 134, Tim Southee 65; Mohammed Siraj 2/84, Kuldeep Yadav 3/99, Ravindra Jadeja 3/72).
Impact Shorts
More ShortsWhat happened on Day 2: Team India will aim for early wickets on Day 3 of the first Test against New Zealand at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. The Kiwis ended Day 2 134 runs ahead of India and with a score of 180/3 after the hosts were bowled out for just 46.
In an abysmal batting performance, Indian batters showed a lack of adequate technique and patience as five of them including Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, and Sarfaraz Khan got out for a duck.
India’s challenges were compounded by the uneven bounce and seaming condition in Bengaluru which has been experiencing rain for a while and also witnessed a washout on Day 1. After the Stumps on Day 2, captain Rohit Sharma braved up the press and admitted that he failed to read the pitch properly and should not have opted to bat first.
Rohit admits toss mistake
“On a pitch where there were assistance for seamers, and now that we got out for 46, you can say the shot selection wasn’t upto the mark. It was a bad day. Sometimes you want to do something but cannot execute,” Rohit told the reporters in the press conference after Stumps.
“It was my misjudgement to bat first. I was expecting a flat pitch, but I couldn’t read the pitch well,” he added.
Rohit also provided an injury update on Rishabh Pant who was forced out of the field after getting hit on knee. Dhruv Jurel kept the wickets in Pant’s absence and he will be performing the same role on Day 3 as well.
“Unfortunately, the ball hit straight on his knee cap, the same leg which he has done a surgery. So, he has got a little bit of swelling on it and the muscles are quite tender at this point of time,” Rohit said.
Pitch report for Day 3
Simon Doull and Murali Kartik did the pitch report at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Day 3 and as per the former cricketers, the pitch has become better for batting and has settled down a bit. There will be some uneven bounce as was spotted by Kuldeep Yadav’s spell on Day 2.
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