India vs New Zealand | Indian batsmen falter to spin on Day 1

KL Rahul, who has become a regular for the opener's spot after an impressive showing in the West Indies, walked out with confidence alongside Murali Vijay in the morning - Rahul started off with some impressive boundaries showcasing his impressive drives. On the other end, Vijay looked patient to see off the new ball as he patiently defended all good balls. But at 32, Rahul nicked it to keeper Watling off a quickie from Mitch Santner.

Cheteshwar Pujara walked in at No.3 on the back of impressive performances in the domestic level and looked solid from the start. The Saurasthra batsman was fluent for the most part of his innings alongside Vijay as they tackled the turn Mitch Santner, Mark Craig and Ish Sodhi were getting off the dusty surface. The pair steered India to 105 for 1 by lunch time as India looked to put a huge total on the board.

However, things went suddenly downhill from there. Pujara was the first to go – after looking set for a century, the batsman went after a quick one from Santner that was fired at his feet, but his inside out shot sent the ball straight back for an easy catch by Satner. Skipper Virat Kohli came in and fired two boundaries but fell for an attempted hook off a Wagner bouncer that found the top edge for an easy catch at backward square leg.

Rohit Sharma and Ravichandran Ashwin attempted a lower-order fightback as the duo began on a counter-attack on the Kiwi bowlers. Sharma was scoring at run-a-ball in the early parts as he scored two fours and a six in no time. But the partnership was ended by Santner as Sharma went for a lofted shot to be caught at long-on.