In the first Test match of the three-match series, New Zealand beat India by eight wickets at the Chinnaswamy stadium in Bangalore.
Rohit Sharma won the toss and, in an unexpected decision, opted to bat first. A possibly wrong decision as the damp conditions favoured pacers. Matt Henry and William ORourke were very effective with the ball in the opening session, putting India on the back foot.
The Indian side was bowled out for just 46 runs, of which only Rishabh Pant (20) and Yashasvi Jaiswal (13) scored in double digits.
Matt Henry was the visitors’ standout bowler in the first inning, picking up a fifer and conceding only 15 runs. William ORourke also grabbed four wickets, with Tim Southee also taking one.
The visitors got off to a good start, with skipper Tom Latham (15) playing out the new ball. Devon Conway (91) added to the total with 11 fours and three sixes. Rachin Ravindra (134) achieved a brilliant and controlled century, with four sixes and 13 fours to his name. Ravindra’s partnership with Southee (65) was game-changing, as both batters scored 137 runs in short succession. NZ were on the edge of being bowled out, but Southee showed top character. It may have been challenging if the Kiwis had needed to chase an additional 100 runs in the second inning.
For India with the ball in the first innings, Ravindra Jadeja and Kuldeep Yadav scalped three wickets each. With them, Mohammed Siraj also bagged two wickets, whereas Jasprit Bumrah managed to get one wicket.
India came to bat again with a clear mindset: clear the trail and establish a comfortable lead to put the Kiwis under strain on Day 5. Sharma (52) produced a quickfire fifty, while Jaiswal (35) also got some beneficial runs against the new ball. The partnership between Virat Kohli (70) and Sarfaraz Khan (150) fuelled confidence as both batters appeared steady and capable of securing the lead in the match. Both batters scored 136 runs collectively. Unfortunately, Kohli was out on the final delivery of Day 3, forcing India to pick up the process yet again. On Day 4, Sarfaraz and Rishabh (99) also got a valiant partnership of a massive 177 runs. However, with the new ball after 80th over, it became much more difficult to take on the pacers, and the unit ultimately collapsed with only a 107-run lead. In what was meant to be one of India’s greatest Test match victories, a pretty cumbersome 45 minutes of play on Day 4 stole the joy from the Indian supporters.
It was rather challenging to get rid of the Indian batters in the second innings, considering how easily NZ had obtained wickets in the first. However, William ORourke and Matt Henry managed to claim three wickets each. Ajaz Patel also bagged two wickets, while one wicket each was grabbed by Glenn Phillips and Tim Southee.
On Day 5, New Zealand batters struggled against the new ball but were able to withstand Siraj and Bumrah’s wizardry. While skipper Latham was down for a duck, Young (48) did well against Indian bowlers. Conway (17) also contributed excellent runs, but it was Rachin Ravindra (39) who stood strong yet again and strolled through the overs to comfortably win the game.
Bumrah was the only bowler to get two wickets while defending on the final day of the match.
With this result, NZ finally registered a Test win in India after 36 years and got the crucial lead in the series, 1-0.
Scorecard:
India: 46/10, Overs 31.2, Rishabh Pant 20, Matt Henry 5/15
New Zealand: 402/10, Overs 91.3, Rachin Ravindra 134, Ravindra Jadeja 3/72
India: 462/10, Overs 99.3, Sarfaraz Khan 150, William ORourke 3/92
New Zealand: 110/2, Overs 27.4, Will Young 48*, Jasprit Bumrah 2/29
