The Black Caps knocked down 107 and humiliated the home team early on the last day of the rain-affected series opener on Sunday, giving New Zealand their first Test triumph in India since 1988 with an eight-wicket victory.
New Zealand set the stage for a 1-0 lead in the three-match series on Saturday by bowling out Rohit Sharma’s team for 462 in the second innings after dismissing India for their lowest home total of 46 and posting 402 in reply.
After losing two early wickets, Will Young (48 not out) and Rachin Ravindra (39 not out) remained composed to complete the task, giving New Zealand just their third victory on Indian soil in 38 attempts dating back to 1955.
Tom Latham, the captain of New Zealand, stated, “It was certainly a good toss to lose.”
“The guys stepped out in that first inning, managed to get the results, and put the ball in the right places for extended periods of time.”
“The game’s opening two innings… We did a great job setting up the game, in my opinion. India put us in a difficult position in the third innings, and we knew they would return, but the way the bowlers responded with the new ball was an incredible display.
After a rain delay, New Zealand’s play got off to a shaky start when Jasprit Bumrah caught new captain Latham leg before wicket for a duck on the second delivery of the day, leaving the tourists without an opening score.
Early in the day, Bumrah and fellow speed bowler Mohammed Siraj caused the New Zealand batsmen a great deal of trouble as India attempted to emulate no side in Test history by winning a match after giving up a lead of over 350 runs in the first innings.
