At stumps, India still trailed New Zealand by 39 runs with six wickets in hand
Trent Boult celebrates the wicket of Cheteshwar Pujara yesterday. Pic /PTI
Wellington: Kane Williamson stationed three short covers for Cheteshwar Pujara. Trent Boult changed his mode of attack from over the wicket to round, thrice in the space of six balls and for Prithvi Shaw, the Kiwis had a man at unorthodox leg-gully. These may have been examples of peculiar tactics but New Zealand applied them perfectly to pick four key Indian wickets on Day Three of the first Test here on Sunday.
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At stumps, India still trailed New Zealand by 39 runs with six wickets in hand. Day Three will be remembered for the strategic choke applied by the New Zealand bowlers with all four Indian batsmen falling to the round-the-wicket line of attack. The Basin Reserve surface had lost its zip, it was slow and not conducive for stroke-making. Apart from the odd delivery that lifted sharply, there was nothing in it for the bowlers, so one had to be creative to pick up wickets.
The catching men placed on either side of the wicket for drives tied the Indian batsmen. It took Shaw 23 balls to hit his first boundary. Few balls later, Boult went round the wicket, angled a short ball into the body of Shaw, who flicked it straight to man that was cleverly stationed for that shot. Pujara was targeted with a barrage of short balls from one end while Colin de Grandhomme bowled a probing off-stump line with three fielders in the cover region. Pujara didn't score for 31 balls. Then, on the stroke of tea, Boult suddenly deviated from his short-ball theory. The left armer first change his line by coming round the wicket and also altered his length. Pujara (11) misjudged the line and length, as the ball crashed into his off-stump.
The short-ball theory was back in place for Kohli. The Indian captain is a great puller and hooker of the ball, but given India's precarious situation in the match and the set field. Kohli opted to ride the short ball or duck under it. He decided to play it safe for a while, but somewhere his instincts had to take over and he finally succumbed, gloving a short ball to BJ Watling for 19.
In between, Mayank Agarwal also fell to the round the wicket line, by leg glancing a full ball to the 'keeper. Agarwal made a well- composed 58, but India needed him to bat until the close of play. At stumps, Ajinkya Rahane was unbeaten on 25 and Hanuma Vihari on 15.
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