India’s first Test match against New Zealand in Bengaluru, had a horrific beginning as they lost the wickets of Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Sarfaraz Khan in the first ten overs after they had elected to bat first under overcast conditions. The match, which rained out a day prior, commenced on Thursday at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium where the Indian counterpart Rohit won the toss and decided to bat first.
The opening ball was supposed to be delayed as the officials wished the floodlights to be in full action since they were called to the pitch too early due to the cloudy surroundings. And then Tim Southee got the first delivery to Yashasvi Jaiswal which due to seam movement, jagad back prolifically in his stance, indicating the seam and swing assisting conditions, which is quite favorable to the Kiwis.
It was evident also why the tourists would not be feeling homesick any time as soon as India quickly lost their top-order batsman Rohit along with Kohli and Khan. Southee was fast making a fool of Rohit who looking to step out and assert his authority on the bowler was beaten by one that snuck in through the gate and crashed into the stumps.
Kohli then got a glove on a short delivery that William O’Rourke bowled, and after Glenn Phillips laced the ball at gully, Kohli was out for a nine-ball duck. Following that Sarfaraz was the target of a catch so impressive it almost rated as a stunner digital art work by Devon Conway as the New Zealander caught the ball at extra cover and left India floundering at 10/3 in 9.4 overs.
In a recent interview, former India cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar identified a chink in Kohli’s armor and advised that the former skipper should have simply waited on the back foot to play the delivery that got him out.
“I have said this before and will say it again. Virat has made his issues worse by trying to play every ball of every length on the front foot. That’s just silly. The ball that got him out today Raj could have easily dealt with off the back foot,” Manjrekar wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
The series opener between India and New Zealand got underway on Thursday after the first day was washed out by rain.
Comments are closed.