NEW DELHI: Spin trio of Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar shared eight wickets between them, triggering a New Zealand second innings collapse to hand India the advantage on the second day of the third and final Test in Mumbai on Saturday.
The Kiwis lost as many as eight wickets in the final session as they were reduced to 171 for 9 in their second innings with a lead of 143 runs at the close of play.
As the spinners trapped the Kiwi batters in a spin web, it has now given India a chance to go for a face-saving victory in the third Test.
On a crumbling Wankhede pitch that offered sharp turn and variable bounce, the Indian spinners ran riot as the Black Caps lost six wickets for 77 runs after Tea.
As It Happened
The Kiwi collapse came after India posted 263 all out in their first innings, securing a slim 28-run lead, riding on half-centuries from Shubman Gill (90) and Rishabh Pant (60), and a crucial unbeaten 38 from Washington Sundar.
15 wickets fell on the second day, making it clear that batting fourth will be challenging for India on Sunday.
Ashwin (3/63) found his groove, while Jadeja (4/52) took four more wickets after his impressive 5/65 in the first innings, keeping India’s hopes alive of avoiding a clean sweep.
Ajaz Patel (7) was at the crease when Jadeja dismissed Matt Henry (10) for the penultimate wicket on the last ball of the day.
Will Young’s gritty 51 was the only significant resistance from the Kiwis, who succumbed to pressure after Patel (5/103) claimed another five-wicket haul.
Ashwin, who had a quiet series until now, showed visible delight when he stumped Rachin Ravindra (4), beating the batter with bounce and turn. Glenn Phillips (26) then tried to use the long handle effectively, but Ashwin bowled him out, securing another critical breakthrough for India. Young, solid in both innings, was Ashwin’s third victim as he was outfoxed by a carrom ball, giving Ashwin a simple catch.
Ashwin also made a notable fielding contribution, ending a resilient 50-run stand between Young and Daryl Mitchell (21). Mitchell and Young had steadied New Zealand after losing their top order. However, Mitchell’s aggressive shot against Jadeja failed to get the desired distance. From mid-on, Ashwin covered 19 meters, diving brilliantly to his left to complete the catch. The wicket marked the beginning of New Zealand’s collapse.
Tom Blundell (4) chopped a delivery onto his stumps off Jadeja, while Ashwin bowled Phillips, who had shifted to aggressive batting mode, recognizing New Zealand’s need for more runs.
At the start of New Zealand’s reply, Akash provided the rare sight of a pacer disturbing the stumps on a turning track, dismantling Tom Latham’s (1) off and middle stumps in the first over.
Earlier, India suffered a setback with Pant’s dismissal towards the end of the morning session, a blow that was felt acutely when play resumed after lunch. From Pant’s dismissal in the 38th over to India folding in the 60th, the team managed just eight boundaries and two sixes. Pant alone hit as many during his brisk half-century.
Ajaz, finding his length, continued his success at the Wankhede Stadium, following up his world record 10/119 in the first innings of the 2021 Test here with another five-wicket haul.
In the second session, Gill narrowly missed out on his century while other batsmen continued to disappoint. Sarfaraz Khan’s struggle was particularly disheartening as he failed to open his account on his home turf, where the 27-year-old often scores runs effortlessly.
Sarfaraz misjudged the length on his first ball, going for a misplaced sweep against Patel. The bounce and turn on the next ball also beat him. He could have been dismissed on the third ball as it bounced off his glove, but there was no fielder at silly point. Eventually, he was caught behind by ‘keeper Tom Blundell as the ball bounced and turned, kissing the shoulder of his bat.
Gill’s flawless 146-ball 90, including seven fours and a six, ended when Patel had him caught at slip.
Jadeja (14) too was caught at slip, though off Glenn Phillips, while Washington fought a lone battle among the three all-rounders, scoring a brisk 38 not out off 36 balls, with four boundaries and two sixes.
India had ceded control to New Zealand with a late collapse on the opening day, but showed resilience to recover quickly.
Pant’s quickfire 60, featuring eight fours and two sixes, was pivotal in shifting the advantage back to India. He countered the Kiwis who had been gifted three unexpected wickets by errors from Virat Kohli (4) and Yashasvi Jaiswal (30).
