Batting magic in Bengaluru as India threaten something special

India 46 and 231 for 3 (Sarfaraz 70*, Kohli 70, Rohit 52) trail New Zealand 402 (Ravindra 134, Conway 91, Southee 65, Jadeja 3-72) by 125 runs

Only one side has ever won a Test after scoring fewer than the 46 they did in the first innings of the match, but India were entertaining thoughts of doing it. They are onto something special in Bengaluru, and that through a sensational attacking approach with the bat. Don’t get it wrong, New Zealand were still ahead on cold numbers, but India have been pulling off unbelievable wins of late and a fourth-innings chase of even a 100 or so will not be easy.

A day after being bowled out for 46 and falling behind by 136 runs, which then ballooned up to a total deficit of 356, India batted at well over five an over until the last few overs to finish 125 behind with seven of their wickets still in hand. New Zealand got themselves late fillip through Glenn Phillips, who snuck in an outside edge from Virat Kohli to the last ball of the day.

When you get bowled out for 46 in the first innings, you need pretty much everything to go your way, but India kept marching on even when things didn’t go their way. Their testing bowling early in the day was interrupted by the quickest hundred-run stand against India in India, but their batters came out positive, putting New Zealand under immense pressure on what was now a flat pitch. The bowlers erred regularly, spread-out fields allowed easy runs, and a catch went down.

Even the falling wickets failed to slow India down. When Yashasvi Jaiswal got out stumped, Rohit Sharma scored 16 off the next eight balls he played. Rohit’s freakish dismissal, played on off a dead defensive, brought out Sarfaraz Khan, who raced away to 23 off 16. Like Joe Root among the hectic England batters, Virat Kohli remained serene, but also skipped down the track to hit a six off Ajaz Patel almost as a nod to acknowledge the positive approach. However, this approach will be tested as a new batter will join Sarfaraz, unbeaten on 70, on the fourth morning.

A lot will also depend on whether Rishabh Pant’s movements will be hampered after he missed one-and-a-half day’s play because of a blow on the knee he had injured in his road accident. The good news for India is that he was padded up along with KL Rahul, and also that he removed the pads even without having to bat on day three.

That was not the case in the morning. Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj got India off to a relentless start, taking a wicket each in their five-over spells. The way Glenn Phillips and Matt Henry kept swinging at the ball didn’t inspire much confidence nor did it bring many runs. The first four wickets fell for 53, and India were now looking at a long tail.

Rachin Ravindra, back to the city where his father was born, had other ideas. He and Tim Southee added 137 runs in a little over 20 overs, the second-quickest stand of 100 or more against India. Ravindra trusted Southee to an extent that he faced only the first three balls of the first 19 in the stand, which seemed to coax responsibility out of the seam bowler known for his six-hitting.

Having started the day on 22 and having taken a boundary off the first ball he faced, a loosener from Siraj, Ravindra batted with urgency but also with respect. He scored 101 of his runs against spin because Bumrah and Siraj hardly gave him a loose ball.

The first signs of any manufacturing of shots came 11 overs before the new ball became available when Ravindra charged Kuldeep Yadav and lofted him back over his head to get to his fifty. He then went over midwicket to take the lead past 200. In the same over, Southee got a half-volley, which he lofted for his first boundary.

Just like that, the flood gates had opened. From waiting for the new ball, India went to delaying the new ball because it only became available close to lunch and they needed a breather to regroup. In the 12 overs leading up to the break, New Zealand scored 102 runs, Ravindra went from 48 off 86 to 104 off 125, and Southee hit three sixes to go past Virender Sehwag’s tally of 91. R Ashwin was taken down ruthlessly as he provided overpitched balls, his 16 overs going for 94 and one wicket off a reverse-sweep.

Post lunch, the new ball kept going past the bat, but New Zealand managed to go past 400. India doubled down on their aggressive approach when they came out to bat, which did make sense on a flatter pitch. Jaiswal still needed some luck when the ball was new, but he also charged down the wicket to drill Matt Henry through mid-off for four.

With the ball not seaming, Henry went too full looking for swing, giving Rohit early momentum in the innings. The run-rate kept growing progressively, but the attacking approach also comes with risk, which it appeared India were happy to live with. There were gasps when Jaiswal ran at Ajaz, and was stumped off a ball that didn’t turn, but this team was not going to give any mixed messages. This is the approach that had brought India a quick 72 runs and had spread the field, and they were happy to live with a dismissal doing this.

Rohit’s immediate assault on Henry even as Kohli took 15 balls to get off the pair summed up India’s mindset. A drive for a four, a pull for a six, then a pull for a four brought up his fifty in just 59 balls.

And then a wicket conjured itself. Rohit defended Ajaz with a dead bat, the ball hit the inner half of the bat and top spun onto the wicket after bouncing behind the crease. Rohit was not aware of where the ball was, which might suggest lack of awareness, but it is doubtful if he had enough time to kick it away.

A delightful partnership of 136 followed. Sarfaraz was cheeky, playing the ball impossibly late or audaciously early. Spin was tackled with sweeps, pace was almost exclusively shown direction behind the wicket. At one point he was ducking William O’Rourke, but the ball nipped back at him, and he ramped it over the keeper just because he could. Kohli was more orthodox in skipping down and lofting Ajaz over long-off.

Runs flowed, bowlers erred, a Henry spell of reverse swing was negotiated, Ajaz dropped Kohli at slip off Phillips, an odd choice for a slip fielder. Phillips is a wicketkeeper who has forced himself to become a utility offspinner to survive in international cricket. It seems he puts a lot more body into the ball than fingers, but he keeps using the angles and keeps trying. With the last ball of the day, he managed to get less turn than expected, and took the faintest of edges to lift New Zealand.