India’s Strong Comeback in Bengaluru Test Against New Zealand
In a rain-affected Test match in Bengaluru, India made a strong effort to recover in the second innings after a poor start against New Zealand. With two days left, India ended the third day at 231/3, following a first innings collapse at 46. Virat Kohli and Sarfaraz Khan led the charge after openers Rohit Sharma and Yashasvi Jaiswal set a cautious start.
Key Performances
Rohit Sharma scored his seventeenth Test fifty before being bowled by Ajaz Patel for 52. Patel, known for his 10-wicket haul against India in 2021, continued to challenge the Indian batsmen. Virat Kohli, who was out for a duck in the first innings, made a strong comeback with a counterattacking 70, reaching his 9,000th Test run milestone. Sarfaraz Khan, also out for a duck earlier, remained unbeaten on 70, marking his third fifty in his third Test match.
Bowling Highlights
Ajaz Patel was the standout bowler for New Zealand, taking 2/70 in 12 overs, while Glenn Phillips took the wicket of Kohli. India trails by 125 runs and faces pressure from New Zealand’s bowlers on the fourth day.
Milestones and Records
Kohli joined an elite group by scoring 9,000 Test runs, becoming the 18th player to do so. He is the fourth Indian to achieve this, following Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, and Sunil Gavaskar. Kohli’s next target is to surpass Graeme Smith on the all-time run-scoring list.
Upcoming Challenges
With two more Tests against New Zealand and a series in Australia, Kohli aims to climb higher in the rankings by the year’s end.
| Brief Scores |
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| India 46 & 231/3 (Virat Kohli 70, Sarfaraz Khan 70*; Ajaz Patel 2/70) vs New Zealand: 402 (Rachin Ravindra 134, Tim Southee 65, Devon Conway 91; Ravindra Jadeja 3/72). |
Doubts Revealed
Virat Kohli -: Virat Kohli is a famous Indian cricketer known for his excellent batting skills. He has been the captain of the Indian cricket team and is considered one of the best batsmen in the world.
Sarfaraz Khan -: Sarfaraz Khan is an Indian cricketer who plays as a batsman. He is known for his talent and has played in domestic cricket tournaments in India.
Bengaluru Test -: The Bengaluru Test refers to a cricket match played in Bengaluru, a city in India. Test matches are a type of cricket game that can last up to five days.
Ajaz Patel -: Ajaz Patel is a cricketer from New Zealand who plays as a bowler. In this match, he performed well by taking important wickets for his team.
9,000th Test run -: Reaching 9,000 Test runs means that Virat Kohli has scored a total of 9,000 runs in Test cricket matches throughout his career. It’s a significant achievement for a batsman.
All-time run-scoring list -: The all-time run-scoring list is a ranking of cricketers based on the total number of runs they have scored in Test matches. Players aim to score more runs to climb higher on this list.