‌IND vs NZ | Sarfaraz and Pant’s audacious fightback eclipsed by rain and second new ball with Kiwis on command

SportsCafe Desk

BySportsCafe Desk, SportsCafe Editor

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New Zealand need 107 runs to win with ten wickets and a day in hand to seal an emphatic win in Indian soil. Sarfaraz Khan’s 150 coupled with Rishabh Pant’s 99 set up India’s 462 runs, albeit the second new ball did the trick for the Kiwis with the hosts losing the last seven wickets for 29 runs.

The sky turned gloomy on the fourth day of the first Test, prompting captain Tom Latham to opt for a pace attack from either end. The only time when the ball moved laterally was after landing on the cracks present in the pitch, albeit Sarfaraz and Pant were easy on the eyes. The former did not hesitate to put away a loosener for boundary with Pant playing second fiddle for the early part of the first session. Soon, the wicketkeeper-batter switched gears with Sarfaraz racing to his maiden Test century with a backfoot punch for four in the 57th over. Right after, Pant joined him by taking down Ajaz Patel for a couple of sixes and a four amidst two reviews, leading up to a well-knit fifty. With dark clouds hovering around the cauldron, the umpires had to pause and call for early Lunch with rain pouring down as India’s score read 344/3 in 71 overs.

After a couple of hours delay, the proceedings resumed with Sarfaraz and Pant attacking the bowlers on any given loseners. The score touched the 400-run mark in the 80th over followed by Sarfaraz getting to the 150 mark and falling prey to Southee’s second new ball spell. Subsequently, Pant kept the scoreboard moving thick and fast with a gung-ho intent before chopping down to Will O’Rourke at 99. Rahul followed suit at the cusp of Tea with India’s score of 438/6.

Wickets fell like nine pins at the start of the third session with the Kiwis taking just about 50 minutes to wrap the rest of the Indian line-up for 462 with a lead of 106 runs. As soon as the New Zealand batters walked out to bat in the middle, the weather turned dark. Jasprit Bumrah did challenge Devon Conway in the four balls he got to bowl before the umpires decided to force the players to stroll off the field. In no time, it started raining pitchforks before the match officials called it a day with New Zealand needing 107 for a win.

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