Indian bowlers once again astonished as New Zealand’s batting fell apart on Day 4 of the second Test with Kohli’s team booking an enormous 372-run to triumph the two-match Test series by 1-0.
Having sent New Zealand for a scanty 62 in the first innings, India bowled out the visitors for 167 in the second to achieve a magnificent victory in Mumbai. India ceased the match on Day 4 with the BlackCaps losing their last five wickets for just 27 runs.
This was India’s first Test win under the guidance of new coach Rahul Dravid.
The 372-run victory was India’s biggest in Test cricket in terms of runs, exceeding the previous best of 337 versus South Africa in 2015.
Whilst New Zealand’s batting left a lot to be craved, the visitors still have a reason to recall the Test admiringly.
Ajaz Patel, New Zealand spinner became only the third bowler in the record of Test cricket to fetch all 10 wickets in an innings. He ended with match figures of 14/225 — the most wickets facing India in a Test match.
Nevertheless, that will only be a sympathy for New Zealand, who are currently the World Test champions.
The visitors were completely defeated in the second Test with the NZ batting collapsing under the coercion of the Indian spinners.
While the players like Ashwin, Jayant Yadav and Axar Patel were almost unable to play at times, the hero of the Test for India was Mayank Agarwal.
Mayank scored an excellent 150 in the first innings and followed it up with 62 in the second. With the players like KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma missing from the series, this was an act from the right-handed opener.
India do have a plenty of problem, but it’s a good pressure to have. However, questions still remain over Ajinkya Rahane’s future. With young players like Shreyas Iyer, who scored his maiden Test century in the first Test, doing great, time could be running out for Ajinkya.
