India vs New Zealand 2021-22, Mumbai Test: Virat Kohli and Co 5 wickets away from win at stumps on Day 3
India is in the driver's seat in the second and final Test against New Zealand in Mumbai. At stumps on Day 3, India is just five wickets away from the win.
FollowIt has been a glorious ride from India in the second and final Test against New Zealand at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. Day 3, on Sunday, went mainly in favour of the Indians, both with the bat and the ball, as at stumps, they are just five wickets away from the series win.
At the overnight score of 69/0, Mayank Agarwal (62) and Cheteshwar Pujara (47) contributed to a 107-run opening partnership before the former fell to spinner Ajaz Patel after scoring his fifth Test half-century, followed by the former to the same man, eight runs later. Nevertheless, an 82-run stand occurred between Shubman Gill (47) and skipper Virat Kohli (36) before the former was dismissed by spinner Rachin Ravindra at 197.
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Shreyas Iyer (14) followed him back off Ajaz 13 runs later, as the Indians had taken an aggressive approach, with the lead swelling past 400. At 217, Kohli played on off Ravindra, while Wriddhiman Saha (13) and Axar Patel (41*) put on 28 more before the former was dismissed by the same man.
At 276, Jayant Yadav (6) was the final man to be dismissed, and with the leading reaching 539, India declared, handing NZ a sturdy target of 540. The Kiwis used five bowlers, with Ajaz claiming a four-for, while pacer Kyle Jamieson was intensely economical. As NZ came out for the chase, they were evidently under immense pressure, despite having more than two days of play remaining, while the pitch was not the best to bat on.
With just 13 runs on the board, skipper Tom Latham (6) was trapped leg-before by veteran off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin, while 32 runs later, fellow opener Will Young (20) fell to the same man after the tea break. At 55, Ashwin got rid of Ross Taylor (6) as the latter carelessly threw away his wicket in an attempt to be ambitious.
Nonetheless, a 73-run partnership ensued between Daryl Mitchell (60) and Henry Nicholls (36*), as the former brought up his second Test half-century before being dismissed by spinner Axar Patel. At the same time, a run later, wicketkeeper-batter Tom Blundell (0) was unfortunately run out, while Nicholls and Ravindra (2) batted out until the end of the day, with NZ still 400 runs behind.
As for the Indians, they have put five bowlers into the attack, with Ashwin claiming three, while he has also been the most economical of all.
Brief scores: India 325 & 276/7 (Agarwal- 62; Ajaz- 4/106) leads New Zealand 62 & 140/5 (Mitchell- 60; Ashwin- 3/27) by 400 runs.
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