Hoping against hope after disaster. For a long time in the second and third sessions on Day 3 of the first Test against New Zealand, India put up a brave front. They showed what they had lacked in the first innings and dominated the attack. Virat Kohli’s dismissal on the last ball of the day brought them back to where they were — looking at despair.
Weather permitting, and it may not if one goes by the forecast, there are two more days to play. For India to salvage anything will require a giant second-innings total. After 46 all out in the first dig, 231/3 looks almost heavenly, but they are still way behind in the game. New Zealand made 402 to take a humongous lead of 356 and the hosts are nowhere near what can be called a safe zone.
On the positive side, the second innings saw a far better display of batting. The pitch played truer than the second morning and the Indians showed a lot of application. Yashasvi Jaiswal committed hara-kiri after a solid start and Rohit Sharma saw the ball roll back to hit the stumps after he had defended it, before Virat Kohli and Sarfaraz Khan rekindled hopes.
After Kohli’s fall for a masterly knock of 70, Indian hopes will revolve mainly around Sarfaraz, KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant, who didn’t take part in Day 3 action following a knock on the knee. All eyes will be on Rahul, who like four of his teammates, got out for a duck in the first innings. The team has kept faith in him despite his inconsistency over the years. Now is the time to repay.
Despite all his flamboyance, Sarfaraz is playing his fourth Test. Pant is injured. Under the circumstances, Rahul is the senior-most batter and the onus is on him to make sure that the team puts up a fight. He has ability, which is why he has been persisted with. The time has come to translate that into something substantial when India need him the most.
Trailing by 125 with seven wickets standing means there is a slim chance of making New Zealand work harder for a win they thought was there for the taking after India crumbled for 46. For that, the home side needs a total of around 500. That’s a long way away and batting will not become easier on the fourth-day pitch. That said, this is their only chance.
“We didn’t have any specific discussion on how to play. But the batters adapted to the conditions and played accordingly (in the second innings),” said Kuldeep Yadav after the day’s play. “Considering our bowling attack, we will be aiming at setting an effective target. We can’t predict a specific total right now as a lot of batting is still left for us. So, let’s see how it goes.”
That’s why the focus will be on Rahul. He has been brilliant at times and impetuous on many occasions. The class he shows has often been neutralised by his frailties. This is a great chance for him to prove that he has the steel to go with his skills. An average of 34.52 in 52 Tests belies his talent. That, however, will be temporarily forgotten if he does something big at his home ground.
Obviously, it won’t only be about Rahul. Sarfaraz, Pant, Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin will all be expected to contribute. For India to salvage something after the first-innings implosion, they will need everyone to chip in and at least two to get hundreds. Being the most experienced of the specialist batters remaining, Rahul will have to shoulder additional responsibility.
Also Read: Rachin feels at home in Bengaluru and drives India crazy with blazing century