Tom Latham heads back to pavilion during the third test against India. Photo / Photosport
Tom Latham heads back to pavilion during the third test against India. Photo / Photosport
They chased down a modest total and defended a massive target. Now, to complete a whitewash over India, the Black Caps must for the first time overcome the odds in the final innings.
Wickets continued tumbling on the second day of a third test progressing rapidly towards a result, with New Zealand heading to stumps facing what for this series was an atypically sticky situation.
Teams have on 20 occasions chased down at least that many to triumph in India, most recently when the hosts easily overhauled 192 to beat England in February.
The Black Caps will require a special performance with the ball if they wish to complete an unprecedented three-test sweep, backing up what eventually became comprehensive winning margins of eight wickets and 113 runs earlier in the tour.
But this would not be the first time a New Zealand bowler produced an exceptional effort at Wankhede.
Ajaz Patel has already recaptured some of the magic of his last trip to Mumbai, when in 2021 he returned to his birthplace and collected all 10 wickets in an innings. A haul of 5-103 on day two of this test was less impressive but much more influential to New Zealand’s chances of victory.
Now, the spinner will need another swag of wickets. Because after helping the Black Caps bowl out India for 263 – trailing by 28 and knowing any lead would look bigger on a deteriorating pitch – the touring batters finally crumbled under the pressure applied by Ravindra Jadeja (4-52) and Ravichandran Ashwin (3-63).
Ajaz Patel celebrates a wicket during the third test against India. Photo / Photosport
With Tom Latham falling in the first over and Rachin Ravindra dismissed for single figures on consecutive days, only Will Young (51) showed the requisite mettle in trying circumstances.
Tasked with filling Kane Williamson’s considerable shoes, Young appeared throughout the series one of the most comfortable batters on either side, second in scoring to Ravindra (256) with 244 runs. Ahead of a three-test home series against England – admittedly on markedly different surfaces – his displays could cause a selection headache for which there was no remedy.
The only batter whose form justifies an omission is Tom Blundell, kept in the team by his wicketkeeping. Two more failures in this test means the 34-year-old is averaging 14 in his last 13 tests.
Blundell’s struggles at No 6 only exacerbated a lengthy tail that might have had Latham wondering whether he made his first selection error of the series.
It would be surprising on day three if Will O’Rourke was called on for more than the two overs he bowled in the first innings. In fact, it would be surprising if he bowled at all. The young seamer could have been replaced in the XI by Mark Chapman, boosting the batting order and giving the travelling reserve a chance to atone for his sole costly involvement in the series.
Chapman was fielding as a substitute on the second morning when he dropped a straightforward chance to remove Shubman Gill, the No 3 proceeding to double his score before being dismissed for 90.
Glenn Phillips was the unfortunate bowler and his luck soon grew worse when Matt Henry spilled an even simpler catch to grant a life to Rishabh Pant, who at least added only seven to a tally of 53.
Ajaz Pate in action during the third test. Photo / Photosport
Pant had done plenty of damage, swinging from the first delivery of the day and quickly posting the fastest half-century by an Indian against New Zealand. Many of those 36 balls were particularly forgettable for Patel.
The left-armer was unable to dictate how he wanted to bowl, forced off his length early and often by a batter who had clearly affixed a target to his foe’s back. With Gill gradually joining the fun, the pair also attacked Phillips and eventually Ish Sodhi.
Latham had been reluctant to turn to the legspinner, whose wicket-taking threat generally came at a cost on the scoreboard. That rendered two bowlers almost redundant but, unlike O’Rourke, Sodhi would produce one important intervention.
Eventually offered a chance, Sodhi took a couple of overs to shake off the rust before striking in his fifth, setting up Pant with his googly before turning one back in and rapping the pad.
That ended the fifth-wicket stand at 96 and, with Patel wrapping up the tail, saw India squander a potentially decisive position on 180-4. Though as their own spinners settled into their work, it seemed the hosts had sufficient runs on the board.
