After five eventful days of some beautiful battle between bat and ball, New Zealand saves the day by batting the entire final day to draw the game. Requiring 284 runs to win the game in the second innings, New Zealand batters showed patience with the bat to draw the match and stay in the series. Rachin Ravindra and Ajaz Patel played 52 deliveries together for the last wicket, ensuring that they did not let the Indian team win the first test match at Kanpur. Both the teams will now travel to Mumbai for the second and the final test match of the India-New Zealand series.
Additionally, many would say that India could have declared a little earlier yesterday after the team was ahead by more than 250 runs. However, that would not take the credit for how the New Zealand batters played to save the match. Earlier today, nightwatchman William Somerville and Tom Latham played through the first session. While the spin trio of Ashwin, Jadeja, and Akshar Patel tried India to get back into the game, with the Kiwis losing wicket quickly, it just wasn’t enough for the Indian team to lead them to a crucial victory. New Zealand batters batted for 98 overs to make an unlikely draw possible. Moreover, this is the first draw match in India since 2018.
India-New Zealand Test Match: New Zealand’s Resilience Pays Off
With this draw, New Zealand has shown why the team is the defending champions of the World Test Championship. Additionally, the match was the dream debut for Shreyas Iyer. The former Delhi Capitals captain scored a crucial century in the first innings and worked hard for his half-century in the second when India was losing wickets constantly. It was also a memorable game for Ravichandran Ashwin, who surpassed Harbhajan Singh to become India’s third-highest test wicket-taker.
India will have many answers to find when the team chooses the team for the second test match. Additionally, captain Virat Kohli will come back to the team after resting for the first game. The India-New Zealand game has always been a treat to watch, and the first game says it all after both the teams played some beautiful cricket on the ground. It will only be in Mumbai that we find out the champions of this test series.
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