The 3rd Test between India vs New Zealand commenced on Saturday and it was another momentous occasion. In Kanpur we saw India playing their 500th Test, at Kolkata it was their 250th Test at home and Indore became India’s 22nd Test venue. The home of many cricket greats, including India’s first Test skipper Col. CK Nayudu, is hosting it’s first-ever Test. After another gruelling day’s play, the ICC ranked no. 1 Test side India emerged on top and finished with 267 for 3 with Indian captain Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane batting on 103 and 79 respectively. The duo brought up a crucial 167-run stand for the fourth wicket to put hosts in a commanding position. Suvajit Mustafi brings you the highlights of Day One’s play. Live cricket scorecard: India vs New Zealand, 3rd Test
‘Toss’ honeymoon continues: Toss does play an important role in subcontinent conditions. In surfaces that assist spin bowling, batting fourth is quite a task and things get worse if the opposition has a bowling attack comprises the names, Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja. For the seventh time on a row, Indian Test skipper Virat Kohli won the toss at home. This means Kohli is yet to lose a toss at home. Batting first will once again help the hosts.
3rd Test – #TeamIndia win the toss and elect to bat first @Paytm Test Cricket #IndvNZ pic.twitter.com/9PyH7qWgkC
— BCCI (@BCCI) October 8, 2016
Indore crowd: It is brilliant to see people turn up in numbers to watch Test cricket whose future is largely debated. Indore became the 22nd Test venue of India and the cricket-crazy fans from the city turned in numbers to support the home side. As the day progressed, the numbers increased. As the day progressed, so did crowd. From mobile flashes to ‘Kohli-Kohli’ and ‘Gambhir-Gambhir’ chants, the atmosphere was noisy and electrifying. It did not end here, the chants then took a different route. Later in the day it was ‘Sachin-Sachin’ and then ‘Sehwag-Sehwag’. Present and past, they remember it all. The last time there was so much noise in a Test, it was on Tendulkar’s farewell match.
Fans outside Holkar Stadium, Indore https://t.co/BeiQJrKXsk #INDvNZ #NZvIND pic.twitter.com/54cnwzaqcF
— CricketCountry (@cricket_country) October 8, 2016
Perhaps, BCCI made the right call by awarding smaller cities Test matches. Indore got its due and deserved every bit of it.
Strange start: There was a problem with the sightscreen. Isn’t it so ‘subcontinental’ problem. Someone was sitting in front of the screen and that led to the slight delay in start. However that wasn’t it. Trent Boult pitched the first ball on middle and off and shaped it in. Surprisingly, a major part of the seam came off. Only a ball old, the leather had to be changed.
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Gautam Gambhir’s intent: The first session was all about Gautam Gambhir’s batting. The southpaw, making his comeback to the national side after more than two years, started with a positive intent. The change in technique was apparent, as he batted with an open stance. Matt Henry tested him with a short ball in the third ball of the fourth over, Gambhir hoisted that over the square-leg boundary for a six.
Gautam Gambhir Back to Back SIXES ! #IndvsNZ @GautamGambhir @mohanstatsman pic.twitter.com/dskAvuALPH
— JIT βΔC (@JITbac) October 8, 2016
There was a fielder placed for the shot and Henry banged another short one, the result: Gambhir playing another pull, this time over long-leg for another six.
Early spin, early break: New Zealand captaincy was impressive. With India off to a brisk start, Williamson employed spin the fifth over. Off-spinner Jeetan Patel immediately struck. He got Murali Vijay to play a flick and the ball stuck to Tom Latham at forward short-leg. Impressive!
Jyotiraditya Scindia: Many luminaries attended at Holkar Stadium in Indore. MPCA boss and renowned politician Jyotiraditya Scindia was present too. In a good gesture, he made his presence to the Mushtaq Ali stand and greeted everyone present in the stand personally and thanked them for attending. Brilliant gesture from a luminary who is a household name in the nation.
Gambhir vs Boult: Gambhir looked solid in this stay at the crease. He had done all the hard work and looked set for a big one. A short stride proved costly for Gambhir. Boult pitched on good-length and the cherry came into the left-hander, beat his bat and thudded to the back leg. Gambhir was plumb and Boult now has dismissed him 3 times in Test cricket.
The ripper: Cheteshwar Pujara looked solid at the crease and was no mood to give away his wicket. It needed a ripper to break through his defence and that is what Mitchell Santner produced in the second session of Day One. The trajectory caught the batsman in two minds and he was neither forward nor back. It turned more than Pujara’s expectation, beat his edge and went on to uproot the stumps.
Ajinkya Rahane survives: Rahane has been India’s best batsman overseas but the same cannot be said about his fortunes in the country. He struggled on Day One. New Zealand pacers dished out short-stuff to Rahane and he looked in discomfort. He survived a few close appeals, edges, whiz passes outside off-stump, took some blows on body (he surely will have some bruises to show after this) but he stood his ground.
He had crawled his way to 45 but then enough was enough. He smacked the first ball of 77th over that was being bowled by Jeetan Patel for a six over mid-wicket to register a fifty. Rahane ended the day at 79*, sharing an unbeaten 167 runs stand with his captain Kohli, who was the hero of the day.
The day belonged to captain:
A run drought by his standards. Kohli has spoilt us with his consistency and we expect runs from his wand, or let us call it bat, every time he steps out. After his brilliant 200 at Antigua in July, Kohli had played eight international innings without registering a 50-plus score. While he gave away his wicket at Kanpur, in Eden Gardens, he scored an attractive 45 on a difficult track and in a challenging scenario to bail India out of a precarious position.
His moment finally came at Indore. He applied himself well, bought time in the middle, played balls to his merit, exhibited brilliant patience to craft his 13th Test hundred. It helped India emerge on top at the end of Day One.
There was an anxious moment though. Kohli looked for a quick single on 99 and it was a direct hit. He meekly celebrated but wanted to be sure. Third umpire gave it not out and there came the moment.
The first century of the @Paytm Test Cricket #INDvNZ series goes to #TeamIndia skipper @imVkohli pic.twitter.com/uLwNEAjVv8
— BCCI (@BCCI) October 8, 2016
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(Suvajit Mustafi consumes cricket for lunch, fiction for dinner and munches numerous other snacks throughout the day. Yes, a jack of several trades, all Suvajit dreamt of was being India’s World Cup winning skipper but ended up being a sports writer, author, screenwriter, director, copywriter, graphic designer, sports marketer, strategist, entrepreneur, philosopher and traveller. Donning so many hats, it’s cricket which gives him the ultimate high and where he finds solace. He can be followed at @RibsGully and rivu7)
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