Zaheer Khan’s magnificent bowling display with five wickets brought the game into the command of India at the end of second day of third and final Test against New Zealand in Wellington. India has now a 233 run led after bowling out the Kiwis for 197.
Fast bowler Khan picked up five while Harbhajan Singh three to expose the Kiwis batting line-up. After the opening batsman Tim McIntosh’s 32 and Ross Taylor’s 42, no other responded well to Indian bowling attack.
The visitor is now in a must win situation to clinch the series 2-0. If so, it would be the first series win for India in New Zealand in 41 years. Apart from Singh and Khan, paceman Ishant Sharma and Munaf Patel too got into the play with one wicket each.
While chasing New Zealand were pushed on the back foot when Zaheer dismissed Martin Guptill, playing on for 17, and then had Daniel Flynn caught by wicketkeeper Mahendra Singh Dhoni for two to reduce the hosts to 31 for two in the morning session.
Zaheer struck in his fourth and the seventh over of the innings as Guptill's defensive backfoot stroke to a sharp short-pitched delivery saw the ball crashing into the stumps.
Zaheer was on target again in his sixth over, enticing Flynn to edge to Mahendra Singh Dhoni behind the stumps. McIntosh got over a difficult period to bat through till lunch while Taylor, fresh from a strokeful 151 in the Napier Test, looked solid at the other end.
In the post lunch session, Zaheer came back to capture the wickets of Tim McIntosh (32) and Jesse Ryder (3) to destroy New Zealand's top order.
Off-spinner Harbhajan then picked up the important wicket of second Test centurion Ross Taylor (42) and James Franklin (15) to dash all hopes of New Zealand's fight-back.
India in its second innings has so far scored 51 runs at the cost of one wicket; Virendra Sehwag again got out cheaply for 12. Gautam Gambhir (28) and Rahul Dravid (9) will take India’s innings forward when they come out in the third day.
India has now a definite chance of winning the match considering the nature of the wicket, provided they put a good trailing total for New Zealand when they come out to bat in their second innings.
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