Pune: Washington Sundar put on an exhibition to spin India into an advantageous position on Day 1 of the second Test against New Zealand at the Maharashtra Cricket Association (MCA) Stadium in Pune.
Sundar ran riot to end up taking seven wickets as India dismissed New Zealand for 259 in 79.1 overs despite a strong start by the visitors in the first session. The Kiwis were well-placed after finishing 92 for 2 in the first session and were largely in control of the afternoon session before Sundar turned the game on its head with a magical spell.
Sundar bagged his maiden five-wicket-haul in Tests, his first in all first-class cricket since Aug 2022 and his first in first-class cricket on Indian soil since October 2017 en route to his career-best first-class figures of 7/59.
After going wicket-less in the opening session, Sundar changed ends and found success from the pavillion end at the stroke of Tea.
He first got through the defences of Rachin Ravindra with a dream delivery before castling Tom Blundell with another cracker to swing the momentum in India’s favour.
He carried the momentum into the final session and bagged the remaining five wickets as the Kiwis lost their last seven wickets for just 62 runs.
Of the seven wickets he picked, five were clean-bowled as the young spinner joined the likes of Anil Kumble, Ravindra Jadeja, Bapu Nadkarni and Jasubhai Patel in an elite list.
Dismissing most batters bowled in an innings for India
5 – Jasubhai Patel vs Aus Kanpur 1959
5 – Bapu Nadkarni vs Aus Brabourne 1960
5 – Anil Kumble vs SA Joburg 1992
5 – Ravindra Jadeja vs Aus Delhi 2023
5 – Washington Sundar vs NZ Pune 2024
Sundar’s figures are joint third-best for an Indian against New Zealand in Tests.
Best figures for India vs NZ in Tests
8/72 – S Venkatraghavan Delhi 1965
8/76 – EAS Prasanna Auckland 1975
7/59 – R Ashwin Indore 2017
7/59 – Washington Sundar Pune 2024
Sundar justifies selection
Sundar’s inclusion in the team was the biggest talking point at the toss as fans and critics questioned the selection of Sundar in the second Test ahead of Kuldeep Yadav, who was dropped in favour of the 25-year-old finger spinner. Sundar, who was only added to the squad ahead of the second Test, repaid the faith shown in him by the team management with career-best figures in only his fifth Test.
Sundar, who was recalled into the Test fold after a gap of 3.5 years, didn’t show any sign of rustiness. He last played for India in red-ball cricket in March 2021 in the fourth Test between India and England in Ahmedabad.
The Kiwis were looking good at one stage with fifties from Conway and Ravindra and were cruising at 200/3 before the Tea break when Washington was brought on for a little spell before tea. The finger spinner turned the tables with an astonishing spell of bowling, Sundar used the dip and drift to great effect to outfox the Kiwis, who would be rueing on missing the chance of registering a big first-innings total.
India, in reply, lost skipper Rohit Sharma (0) and finished the day on 16/1, trailing by 243 runs.
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