BENGALURU: New Zealand hit back after smashing knocks by India’s Sarfaraz Khan and Rishabh Pant on a rain-hit day four of the first Test in Bengaluru on Saturday, with the tourists needing 107 for victory.

Fast bowlers Matt Henry and William O’Rourke took three wickets each to bowl out India for 462 in the final session at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium.

New Zealand skipper Tom Latham and Devon Conway came out to bat but only four balls were bowled and no runs were scored before bad light forced the players off, a heavy downpour began and stumps were called.

“I wouldn’t say it’s an easy wicket here. Obviously we’ve got a world-class team going up against us,” O’Rourke said.

“I think we’ve got to be confident going out there tomorrow and hopefully for the crowd’s sake the rain stays away and we get the chance to have a crack at the total.”

New Zealand will attempt on Sunday’s final day to wrap up their first victory in India since 1988. The Black Caps have won just two Tests in India, including one in 1969.

The lowest target ever defended successfully in a Test by India was 107 against Australia at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium in 2004.

Rain also interrupted play towards the end of the first session, with around two hours lost on an action-packed day.

Sarfaraz, who struck 150, and the left-handed Pant, who hit 99, put on 177 runs for the fourth wicket to overhaul India’s big deficit of 356 before the second new ball did the trick for the Black Caps.

Sarfaraz, who hit his first ton in four Test appearances, fell soon after reaching 150 when he was caught at cover off Tim Southee.

“Since I started playing cricket, it was my dream to play for India and score a 100 for India. I am happy,” the 26-year-old Sarfaraz told reporters.

“It is not an easy wicket and I feel the game has not slipped out of our hands. If we can take out two or three quick wickets then they will suffer the same fate.”

O’Rourke denied Pant his century with a delivery from around the wicket that took the edge of the bat and rattled the stumps and then got KL Rahul out for 12 on the stroke of tea.

Pant came in to bat after resting on Friday with a knee injury.

It was the same knee he hurt in a serious car crash in December 2022 that forced him out of action for more than a year.

Wickets kept tumbling and Henry wrapped up the innings with two in one over.

India, who resumed on 231-3, lost seven wickets for 54 runs after New Zealand took the second new ball in the 81st over.

Rookie O’Rourke sent down three successive maiden overs with a wicket in each to finish with 7-114 from India’s two innings.

Before lunch, Sarfaraz punched a boundary off the back foot through cover off Southee to reach his ton, earning a hug from Pant and a standing ovation from fans and team-mates.

India were bowled out for 46 in the first innings, their third-lowest Test total and their lowest at home.

New Zealand’s Rachin Ravindra then put the tourists ahead with 134, steering them to 402 all out.

The opening day’s play was washed out due to rain.

SCOREBOARD

INDIA (1st Innings) 46 (R. Pant 20; M. Henry 5-15, W. O’Rourke 4-22)

NEW ZEALAND (1st Innings) 402 (R. Ravindra 134, D. Conway 91; T. Southee 65; R. Jadeja 3-72, K. Yadav 3-99)

INDIA (2nd Innings, overnight 231-3):

Y. Jaiswal st Blundell b Patel35

R. Sharma b Ajaz Patel52

V. Kohli c Blundell b Phillips 70

S. Khan c Patel b Southee150

R. Pant b O’Rourke99

K.L. Rahul c Blundell b O’Rourke12

R. Jadeja c Young b O’Rourke5

R. Ashwin lbw Henry15

K. Yadav not out6

J. Bumrah c Blundell b Henry0

M. Siraj c Southee b Henry0

EXTRAS (B-7, LB-9, NB-1, W-1)18

TOTAL (all out, 99.3 overs)462

FALL OF WICKETS: 1-72 (Jaiswal), 2-95 (Sharma), 3-231 (Kohli), 4-408 (Sarfaraz), 5-433 (Pant), 6-438 (Rahul), 7-441 (Jadeja), 8-458 (Ashwin), 9-462 (Bumrah)

BOWLING: Southee 15-2-53-1; Henry 24.3-3-102-3 (1nb); O’Rourke 21-4-92-3 (1w); Patel 18-3-100-2; Phillips 15-2-69-1; Ravindra 6-0-30-0

NEW ZEALAND (2nd Innings):

Tom Latham not out0

D. Conway not out0

EXTRAS0

TOTAL (for no wicket, 0.4 overs)0

BOWLING: Bumrah 0.4-0-0-0

Published in Dawn, October 20th, 2024