NZ 345/7 at Lunch
India has taken the new ball. Siraj into the attack. Southee continues to attack and it coming off very well. A pull over square leg for a six now. Southee ALMOST chops it on to the stumps but with a good footwork, he manages to kick the ball away.
Lunch has been taken.
October 18, 2024 11:22
100
NZ 335/7
Ashwin. Ravindra sweeps for four to get to his century! Superb innings this off 124 balls. His second Test century. Southee makes merry of Ashwin’s wayward lines. Three fours and a six came in that over.
NZ 315/7
Ravindra now slog sweeps Jadeja towards midwicket for a SIX! Brilliant batting this. Follows it up with a four behind square. He’s on 99 now.
NZ 302/7
Ravindra and Southee have added more than 50 runs for this wicket. If India looked to turn things around 30 minutes ago, New Zealand has taken hold of the game again. Ravindra once again goes on backfoot and punches the ball towards midwicket for four. Southee finishes the Ashwin over with a SIX.
NZ 280/7
Ravindra moves into his 70s with a couple of boundaries off Jadeja. This is a superb innings by Ravindra. The lead is inflating.
NZ 272/7
India has put a spread-out field against Ravindra. Ashwin beats him on a couple of occasions, but he takes a single off the final ball of the over to keep the strike.
NZ 269/7
R Ashwin into the attack for the first time today. Low full toss and Ravindra slog sweeps it for a SIX over long on. Beautifully timed.
NZ 256/7
Ravindra hits back-to-back boundaries off Kuldeep to not only get to his fifty but also takes New Zealand past 200-run lead. Southee ends the over with another boundary.
NZ 240/7
Tim Southee and Rachin Ravindra continue to keep the scoreboard ticking. Kuldeep has been luckless this morning, plenty of plays and misses. Beautiful bowling by Kuldeep.
ICYMI: Bumrah is current highest wicket-taker in 2024
Jasprit Bumrah became the highest wicket-taker in Tests for the 2024 calendar year during first match against New Zealand in Bengaluru on Friday.
NZ 233/7
And another wicket for Jadeja. Matt Henry hit him for two consecutive boundaries, but Jadeja strikes back as he cleans him up off the very next ball. Seventh wicket down for New Zealand.
NZ 223/6
Jadeja. OUT! Phillips is gone. Straighter one, he goes back to defend but the ball goes past him and rattles the stumps. India crawling back into the game. Matt Henry at the crease now.
NZ 222/5
Kuldeep Yadav from the other end. A huge appeal for LBW against Ravindra but umpire says not out. Indians are excited and have taken review. Wickets and Impact comes down to umpire’s call so Ravindra survives. SIX! A huge hit by Phillips straight over the bowler’s head.
NZ 215/5
Ravindra Jadeja into the attack. Seems like India is luring Phillips to hit the spin. There’s a gully and a slip in place. Phillips looking to slash Jadeja but gets beaten.
NZ 215/5
Phillips places it between covers. A long chase for Ashwin who gets to it in time and saves a run. Five runs off the over. Bumrah back. On the pads towards mid-wicket, Ravindra takes a single. Edged! But goes between slips and gully to the ropes. Four for Phillips. Swing and a miss! Looks like Phillips wants to go big.
NZ 204/5
Four for Ravindra. Punches it down and bounces past Siraj to long-off fence. A couple of singles and that’s six runs off Siraj’s over. Bumrah starts with one that nips back in, hitting Blundell’s back thigh. Edged and taken! Rahul at second slip holds on to the ball. Glenn Phillips comes in. Wicket maiden for Bumrah.
NZ 198/4
Ravindra could have taken his stump off. Gets the inside half of the bat on it but is safe. Takes a single to hand strike to new man in, Tom Blundell. Bumrah made it difficult for him but gets the line wrong on the last which is flicked to fine leg ropes. Gets off the mark.
NZ 193/4
Siraj keeping up the tighter line. Hits Mitchell on the pads but was going down leg. Switches it up this time and beats the batter. An edge but beats the slip to third man fence. And OUT! Luck doesn’t go his way this time as he gets another edge which is caught by Jaiswal at gully. Held on to it well as the ball was going to the left of him.
NZ 189/3
Tidy over by Bumrah. Ravindra got a bit of the bat on a few deliveries but that fourth one went dangerously close to the bat. Beats him to the keeper. Takes no chance in the next and lets it by. Blocks the last one to end the maiden over.
NZ 189/3
Siraj continues. Ravindra gets a thickish edge towards mid-wicket and takes a single. His partner, however, hasn’t been able to get going just yet. Mitchell taking his sweet time to open his account today.
NZ 188/3
Bumrah this over. Ravindra shouldering arms, ball moving just across. Defending a few. Unable to get it past the fielder. Beats covers but Siraj stops it from running to the ropes. Three runs off the last ball.
NZ 185/3
Siraj to get things going for India. Ravindra starts with a cracking shot to the ropes. Flicks it through mid-wicket. On the defensive for the next two. Going down leg in the fourth and Siraj continues the same line, getting him on the pads, but that was missing. Five runs.
Jurel to continue
News from the ground is that Dhruv Jurel will continue keeping as Rishabh Pant nurses the injury he picked up yesterday. We’re hoping it isn’t anything serious and we will see him back in action soon.
Pitch report
It’s a bright and sunny morning in Bengaluru. The pitch has dried up, revealing plenty of cracks. We have a good day of cricket coming up. Hopefully, the weather stays clear throughout.
It’s almost time
Just a few more minutes before Day 3 is underway. Rachin Ravindra (22) and Daryl Mitchell (14) will come out to bat for New Zealand.
What Rohit had to say about Pant’s injury
“Unfortunately, the ball hit straight on his kneecap, the same leg he has done a surgery on. He has got a little bit of swelling on it, and the muscles are quite tender at this point of time. It is a precautionary measure, we don’t want to take a risk, Rishabh doesn’t want to take a risk.”
Another huge blow for India
Rishabh Pant walked off the field after picking up an injury on Thursday during the first Test between India and New Zealand at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.
In case you were wondering..
Here are a couple of the unwanted records that India made on Day 2
Lowest Test total at home - READ
Third-lowest total in Test overall - READ
On Kohli batting at number three
Yesterday, Kohli came out to bat number three in Tests after an eight-year gap. However, he got out for a nine-ball duck.
“After a long time, KL has found a place at No.6. So, we want to make him bat there. The experienced players are the ones who have to take that extra responsibility, and this time it was Virat. He was the one who was ready to do that. We asked him whether he can bat at No. 3, because we wanted to give Sarfaraz [Khan] also the position in which he usually bats. We didn’t want to change Rishabh [Pant] and KL, and hence Sarfaraz went at four and Virat batted at three,” Rohit explained that decision.
Does Rohit Sharma regrets his decision to bat?
In short, yes.
“I am hurting a little bit, because I made that call. But we want to challenge ourselves. This time it didn’t come off, the challenge that was thrown at us. We didn’t respond well, and we found ourselves in a situation where we got bowled out for 46 runs. As a captain, it definitely hurts to see that number, but in 365 days, you will make two or three bad calls, that’s absolutely fine, I guess,” Rohit said after the day’s play.
‘Home is not a place, it’s a feeling’
After the first day’s play was called off without a ball being bowled due to rain, India, questionably, chose to bat and suddenly Wellington felt much closer than 7,000 miles away.
Here’s Dhruva Prasad taking you through second day’s play:
New Zealand dominates India in Test match with Conway's century, India's lowest total, and Kiwi bowlers' brilliance.
What happened on Day 2?
- India opted to bat first in overcast conditions; brought in Kuldeep Yadav for Akash Deep
- Immediately regretted the decision as New Zealand pacers got plenty of movement on and off the pitch
- Five Indian batters scored a duck as India was shot down for its lowest-ever total at home - 46 inside 32 overs
- Matt Henry picked five wickets while William O’Rourke took four.
- When Kiwis came to bat, the weather got clear in Bengaluru and there was less movement for Indian bowlers
- Opener Devon Conway hit a brilliant 91 as New Zealand finished the day at 180/3
- The spin trio - Ashwin, Jadeja, and Kuldeep - took a wicket each
How’s the weather in Bengaluru?
“Slightly chilly, the sun is out and totally dry,” our reporter Dhruva Prasad with the good morning text.
Welcome!
Welcome to the live coverage of the third day of the opening Test between India and New Zealand being played in Bengaluru. Stay tune for the live updates.
