FILE PHOTO: Cricket – ICC World Test Championship Final – India v New Zealand – Rose Bowl, Southampton, Britain – June 22, 2021 New Zealand’s Tim Southee celebrates taking the wicket of India’s Rohit Sharma Action Images via Reuters/John Sibley
November 26, 2021
NEW DELHI (Reuters) – India’s Shreyas Iyer smashed a century on his test debut but Tim Southee produced a terrific spell to bowl out the hosts for 345 in the opening test in Kanpur on Friday.
New Zealand then mounted a strong reply and were 72 for no loss at tea, still 273 runs behind, on day two at the Green Park Stadium.
Will Young was batting on 46 at the break with Tom Latham on 23 at the other end. Latham was given lbw twice but survived as replays confirmed edges before ball hit pad on both occasions.
India had resumed on 258-4 and all eyes were on Iyer as the 26-year-old, only making his debut with several frontline batsmen rested, approached his hundred.
He showed no nerves and hit Kyle Jamieson (3-91) for back-to-back boundaries and then took two off him to bring up his century, the Mumbai batsman kissing his helmet and raising his arms while the sparse crowd in the stadium cheered.
Southee (5-69), who had dismissed Ravindra Jadeja for his overnight score of 50, wrecked India’s middle and lower order.
His victims included Iyer, who made 105 before playing a lazy drive that was pouched by Will Young at cover. It was a tame end to an otherwise stellar knock studded with two sixes and 13 boundaries.
Southee, who bowled 11 overs on the trot in the morning session, went on to complete his 13th five-wicket haul in test cricket.
Spinner Ajaz Patel removed the last two Indian batsmen as New Zealand conceded 87 runs on Friday to claim the last six wickets.
Ravichandran Ashwin chipped in with a breezy 38 but India fell short of the 350-mark.
(Reporting by Amlan Chakraborty in New Delhi; Editing by Peter Rutherford)
Source: One America News Network
