NEW DELHI: Despite New Zealand holding a slim 143-run lead with only one wicket remaining in their second innings, spinner Ajaz Patel believes India will face a stern test chasing a seemingly modest target on a deteriorating Wankhede pitch.
Patel, who bagged five wickets for 103 runs in India’s first innings, emphasized the unpredictable nature of the pitch as a crucial factor in the match’s outcome.
“Whatever we score, we’re going to have to try and do our best to restrict India but it’ll be interesting to see how the wicket continues to play,” Patel said.
He noted that the pitch has historically exhibited less turn and bounce in the morning sessions compared to the afternoons.
Whether this is due to overnight rolling or the heat drying the surface remains unclear. The morning session will therefore be crucial in understanding how the pitch will play and what approach both teams need to adopt.
“It’s turning quite sharply, it’s inconsistent in terms of how much it does turn and bounce, but as a spinner it’s encouraging as well that you’re going to get something out of the surface and for batting it’s quite challenging,” he added. “It is certainly turning from both ends, it’s just the bounce is a little bit variable, so from a batting perspective that can be a challenge as well.”
Patel acknowledged Rishabh Pant’s counter-attacking 60 as a pivotal moment in the match.
“I felt like I bowled really well but Rishabh batted exceptionally, he’s been phenomenal throughout this tour and he’s kind of the player that’s put pressure back on us, regardless of the situation,” He said. “As long as you’re putting the ball in good areas and you have a good plan and a good set field, then it’s about him taking the option and he is being very, very good and taking the right options.”
Despite his own success and the commendable performance of New Zealand’s spin attack, Patel refrained from claiming superiority over their Indian counterparts.
“I don’t necessarily believe we’ve out-bowled the Indian spinners, the class of the Indian bowling attack is quite phenomenal,” the spinner said. “For us as a spin bowling group, we’ve grown a lot and we can continue to show that everyone is quite capable, there’s a lot of communication between us and we make sure that we’re all aware of what the plan is at a certain given time.”
