NEW DELHI: India’s second innings on the third day of the first Test against New Zealand in Bengaluru saw a spirited fightback, with Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and Sarfaraz Khan scoring fluent half-centuries.
However, Kohli’s dismissal off the last ball of the day to Glenn Phillips, caught behind by Tom Blundell, left India at 231 for three at stumps, still trailing the Black Caps by 125 runs.
Kohli, who reached the milestone of 9,000 Test runs during his innings, shared a 136-run partnership with Sarfaraz Khan, who remained unbeaten on 70 at the close of play.
The crowd at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium erupted in celebration when Kohli reached his fifty at his adopted home ground, where he represents the Royal Challengers Bangalore in the IPL.
Earlier, spinner Ajaz Patel made inroads into the Indian top order, dismissing openers Yashasvi Jaiswal (35) and skipper Rohit Sharma (52) after they had put on a 72-run stand.
India vs New Zealand Test: Focus returns on India batters after high-scoring day
Rohit’s dismissal came shortly after he had smashed Matt Henry for a sequence of four, six, and four to bring up his half-century.
The day, however, belonged to New Zealand’s Rachin Ravindra, who scored his second Test century and was the last man out in the tourists’ first innings total of 402.
Ravindra, resuming on his overnight score of 22, reached his hundred with a boundary off Ravichandran Ashwin before lunch. He shared a crucial 137-run partnership for the eighth wicket with Tim Southee, who contributed a quickfire 65.
India’s pace duo of Mohammed Siraj and Jasprit Bumrah struck early in the morning session, while spinners Ravindra Jadeja and Kuldeep Yadav claimed three wickets each.
The hosts were without the services of wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant, who remained off the field after injuring his knee. Dhruv Jurel took over as the substitute wicketkeeper.