Team India ended Day 1 of the ongoing first Test of the two-match series against New Zealand on top as they amassed 258 runs for the loss of four wickets before play stopped due to bad light. Debutant Shreyas Iyer was the top performer of the day as he played some exuberant shots while Shubman Gill and Ravindra Jadeja slammed half-centuries as well to keep India in the commanding position. However, the hosts had to work hard for their runs owing to a brilliant bowling performance shown by the Kiwi bowlers.
After opting to bat first, India lost opener Mayank Agarwal was dismissed early. Kyle Jamieson was rewarded for his disciplined line and lengths as the batter finally nicked one after playing and missing a lot. Cheteshwar Pujara then joined Gill to forge a 61-run partnership. Gill looked his usual self playing aggressive shots and got to his half-century.
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Just when it looked like Gill will announce his comeback in grand style, Jamieson broke a lot of hearts castling Gill. Southee sent back Pujara soon to leave India, kind of struggling at 106/3 in the second session. Ajinkya Rahane started cautiously but then runs started to flow soon from his bat. A couple of authoritative drives were unfurled while the debutant Iyer also began to flourish after an extremely nervous start.
Once again, against the run of play, Rahane, when it looked like he will score big, lost his wicket playing one on to his stumps while on 35. It was that man again, Jamieson picking up his third wicket of the day as he continued to trouble the Indian batters. At 145/4, with only all-rounders and a wicketkeeper to come and a debutant in the middle, Shreyas Iyer started gaining confidence with every ball he face, and he nicely blended caution with aggression while Ravindra Jadeja.
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Jadeja has taken his batting to the next level and the duo kept the Kiwis at bay. Shreyas Iyer and Jadeja have added 113 runs so far for the fifth wicket and are batting on 75 and 50 respectively. Having posted 258 runs on the board already, India will be looking to surpass the 400-run mark on Day 2. However, New Zealand should be appreciated for doing well picking the top four wickets.
Here’s how Twitter reacted:
Good start to the test career @ShreyasIyer15 👊
— Rohit Sharma (@ImRo45) November 25, 2021
Shreyas you make batting look so effortless and easy💪😍 #oneofmyfavorites
— Sheldon Jackson (@ShelJackson27) November 25, 2021
Super start of a Test career for @ShreyasIyer15 . Getting the Test cap from Sunil Gavaskar and on the verge of a debut ton, his hard work has translated his dream into reality. Well played. #INDvsNZ
— R P Singh रुद्र प्रताप सिंह (@rpsingh) November 25, 2021
Jadeja’s batting transformation is all about a clear Gameplan and the commitment-belief of sticking with it for as long as possible. What an incredible value-addition in the whites. #IndvNZ
— Aakash Chopra (@cricketaakash) November 25, 2021
Congratulations on your Test debut and half century @ShreyasIyer15 👏 All the hard work you’ve put in has paid off bro 🤗🇮🇳 pic.twitter.com/YKMLv5MtrG
— Shikhar Dhawan (@SDhawan25) November 25, 2021
Top class effort from @imjadeja. He adds immense value batting at the number and we all know how useful he is with the ball. @ShreyasIyer15 would benefit from his presence. #INDvNZ
— Reema Malhotra (@ReemaMalhotra8) November 25, 2021
😅 #INDvNZ pic.twitter.com/JpRSwzk8RQ
— Wasim Jaffer (@WasimJaffer14) November 25, 2021
Through this morning and afternoon, I was sure that with India playing test matches after a long break and Ashwin and Jadeja in the team, our batting will start no.6 and no.7 but Shreyas has altered the script, slightly..#Kanpur #IndvNZ
— Shreik (@Sh07509514) November 25, 2021
https://twitter.com/CricketArsh/status/1463832740881567759?s=20
What a performance! 👏. The New Zealand toiled for wickets the full day but Kyle Jamieson didn’t have that much trouble, as he took a 3-fer.#INDvNZ pic.twitter.com/ZLc5j0VkJ4
— Nothing 🙁 (@MandarTikam) November 25, 2021
https://twitter.com/ForeverVirat018/status/1463833158160306187?s=20
