Ajinkya Rahane will be very worried today. There is some concern about the match. To win the Kanpur Test, the opponent will have to pick up 9 wickets on the last day. However, Rahane’s main concern may be his place in the team. Incumbent Shreyas Iyer has made a bet to take the place of the co-captain of that team!
On the fourth day, the Indian team was in great danger. But Rangano Iyer, who made his debut in the first innings with a century, also shone in the second innings. In his 85-run innings, India beat New Zealand by 264 runs. New Zealand finished the fourth day with 4 runs for the loss of 1 wicket. Tomorrow the visitors will enter the field with the goal of 280 more runs.
Looking at the history, Rahane is not thinking about the fate of this match. The highest run-scoring record in the fourth innings at Kanpur was 240 runs. In that match of 1956, the host team also lost by scoring this run. In Kanpur, insufficient time has played a key role in avoiding the loss in the last innings. There was an opportunity to play at least 90 overs, in which case almost all the teams lost.
The only exception is one. And that is what New Zealand is hoping for. In the fourth innings against India in 1986, the opponent decided to draw the match with a target of 363 runs. The team also spent 117 overs on spin-friendly wickets. Richard Hadley’s New Zealand was the team that scored 193 runs for 6 wickets.
That’s why Kane Williamson can look for inspiration from his predecessors. However, Rabichandran Ashwin, Rabindra Jadeja and Akshar Patel have hinted that they will be a big obstacle in their plan to spend 90 overs. New Zealand batted only 4 overs today after reaching the target of 264 runs. New Zealand lost Will Young by 4 runs. William Somerville and Tom Latham were relieved to have the last six balls of the day.
The start of the day was indicative of something else. Starting the day with 14 runs for 1 wicket, India lost 5 wickets for 51 runs. Tim Southee and Kyle Jamieson were the best bowlers of the opposing fast bowlers on Indian soil. Captain Ajinkya Rahane, who went through bad form throughout the year, returned with 4 runs. Regular captain Virat Kohli will return to the team in the next Test. In this situation, if a batsman is dropped from the team, who will be dropped – everyone is saying Rahane’s name in answer to that question.
In such a situation, the anointed Iyer has given confidence to the team. Ravichandran handled the initial push with Ashwin. When Ashwin (32) returned after a pair of 52 runs, Riddhiman Saha joined Iyer. Iyer returned after giving the team a safe position.
By the time Iyer returns for 65, India’s lead has crossed 200. Riddhiman has done the rest. Akshar Patel (28 *) with 8 runs for the eighth wicket partnership. India declared the innings after scoring 234 runs for 8 wickets. Riddhiman was unbeaten on 61 runs. Saudi and Jamison — both took 3 wickets.
