India may have indeed found themselves in a tough spot in the first Test against New Zealand at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, but former cricketer Aakash Chopra feels a turnaround is still possible. Considering the glorious win of India against Australia at Eden Gardens in 2001, Chopra drew parallels between that Test match and the current situation.
A decade ago, back in 2001, India, following their poor first innings effort under Sourav Ganguly, needed to follow on. But that Rahul Dravid-VVS Laxman record partnership scripted a second innings of a lifetime.
Commentator contractor Aakash Chopra is optimistic that things may look up for around the time India bats again. He was pretty positive about the host team setting up a decent total of around 400-450 runs in the second innings. ‘The 46-run collapse in the first innings is done and dusted, and this pitch will be far better for batting,’ he said.
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“Back in 2001, no one thought India could win, and they did. Something similar can happen now. The wicket is going to ease out, and the bowlers who troubled India in the first innings may not be as effective in the second. Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, and Ajaz Patel will be the ones spinning the ball, and even our No. 8 batter has six centuries,” Aakash Chopra said.
However, he was cautious that India first had to prevent New Zealand from scoring a huge lead. “If they get to a position to declare, then India will be in trouble,” he added.
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New Zealand resumed Day 3 at 180/3 and took their lead to 134. The Indians showed some resistance by taking four wickets for 53 runs in the morning session. But the stand of Rachin Ravindra and Tim Southee arrested India’s revival. Ravindra, who had brilliant footwork against both the spinners and pacers, celebrated his century with a boundary off Ravichandran Ashwin on the final ball of the session. By lunch, New Zealand increased their lead to 299 without losing any wickets – Ravindra was on 104 and Southee on 49. India was facing a challenging situation from the sessions that followed.
