Seasoned left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja bagged his 14th five-wicket haul and Washington Sundar claimed four wickets as India bowled out New Zealand for 235 on the opening day of the third and final Test of the 2024 series at the Wankhede Stadium here on Friday.
Jadeja claimed 5-65 landing double strikes twice while Sundar, who bagged two wickets apiece in the morning and evening session for his 4-81 as the Indian bowlers exploited the turning track to the fullest.
New Zealand have to thank Will Young and Daryl Mitchell for going past the 200-run mark as they shared an 89-run partnership for the fourth wicket. Young scored a patient 71 while Mitchell top-scored with 82 off 129, hitting three fours and three sixes. Only four of New Zealand’s batters reached double figures as the visitors lost six wickets for 76 runs.
Earlier, the near-identical dismissal of Tom Latham and Rachin Ravindra by Sundar, after Akash Deep had given India the breakthrough by trapping Devon Conway lbw for four, was the highlight of the morning session as New Zealand reached 92/3 at lunch.
Sundar, who was brought in as the second change to replace Akash Deep, struck two quick blows to grab the initiative for India. He first castled Latham with a superb delivery that landed on the off-stump and straightened, evaded the bat and rearranged the furniture. Latham perished for 28 off 44 balls, hitting three boundaries.
The big breakthrough for India was sending back Rachin Ravindra cheaply as Sundar repeated the delivery that got Latham, sending this one from wider of the crease to spin past the defensive prod to clip the off stump. This was the third time in a row that Ravindra was bowled by Washington Sundar. New Zealand were 72/3 in the 20th over. For a spinner, Sundar was a bit untidy and bowled five no-balls in his first spell of 12 overs.
Young, who showed his attacking instinct by using his feet and carting Ashwin over wide long-on off for a six and swept Sundar to the left of the keeper for a boundary, kept going from the other end and got good support from Mitchell as they ook New Zealand past the 100-run mark.
Young was a bit lucky as a couple of edges fell away from the fielders and DRS review by India, but he made the most of the opportunity. Daryl Mitchell survived when he got a decision for LBW overturned as he gloved it onto his pad. He also struggled with the hot and humid conditions, playing with an ice pack on his shoulder and seeking extra fluids between overs.
Jadeja claimed all three wickets to fall after lunch, breaking the crucial partnership between Young and Mitchell, who raised 89 runs for the fourth wicket as the visitors struggled to cope both with the hot and humid conditions and the Indian bowlers, especially the spinners who extracted good turn from the pitch.
He ended the fourth wicket partnership when he extracted ample turn with the delivery that landed full just outside the off-stump and took the edge into the hands of Rohit Sharma at first slip.
Three balls later, the left-arm spinner had another wicket when he made one turn across Tom Blundell’s bat from the middle stumps and clipped the off. His third wicket came in the form of Glenn Phillips with a quicker one that slid with the arm and went past the bat to hit the stumps.
Running out of partners, Mitchell, who had his heart in his mouth as a top-edge on a sweep evaded the fielder at the boundary and an inside edge went just wide of Kohli at backward short leg, chanced his arms, hitting three sixes in three overs off Sundar. He pulled a shortish delivery from deep inside the crease over midwicket for six and then struck Sundar for two sixes in the 62nd over, skipping down the wicket for a loft over the bowler’s head and then unleashed a big one over long-off.
Sundar had the last laugh as he sent back Mitchell, who Mitchell scored 82 off 129 balls, hitting three fours and an equal number of sixes as he bravely hung around at the crease in difficult conditions. New Zealand’s innings ended 42 minutes after tea when Ajaz Patel was trapped in front of the wicket as he tried to hit out.
Brief scores:
New Zealand 235 all out in 65.4 overs (Daryl Mitchell 82, Will Young 71; Ravindra Jadeja 5-65, Washington Sundar 4-81) against India.