MATCH STORY
Follow UsRachin Ravindra has got some X-factor in his batting with a sense of solidity about him.
He has shown it on multiple occasions already in his brief international career, be it his three hundreds in the World Cup last year or his valiant 92 in a lost cause in the Test against Sri Lanka last month.
He added to this tally by shutting the door on an Indian team desperate for a comeback on Day 3 of the Bengaluru Test. The left-hander missed the mark in the aforementioned match against Sri Lanka but notched up his second Test ton versus India in the first Test.
Ravindra walked out to bat on Day 2 with New Zealand in a comfortable position – leading by 96 runs with eight wickets in hand. However, he did the damage on Day 3, resuming from his overnight score of 22 and reaching his hundred by the end of the morning session.
India were spirited to make a comeback, snaring four wickets for 53 runs in the first hour. New Zealand were still leading by 187 runs but with wickets falling in a cluster, it felt as if India had left the poor Day 2 behind them and are ready to make a move in this contest. And when the Men in Blue, in that mood in home conditions, are arguably among the most intimidating sides in cricket history.
Ravindra was 42 off 78 balls when Matt Henry fell as the seventh wicket. From thereon, he went on to complete his hundred in 124 balls only, translating to nearly 60 runs over the subsequent 46 balls. It was a punishing knock in a partnership with Tim Southee (112* from 97 deliveries) that has consolidated New Zealand’s position further.
Ravindra scored over 50% of his runs in boundaries. Against spinners, India’s primary weapon at home, he plundered 88 off 89 balls – 41 runs off 39 balls against Ravindra Jadeja, 17 off 15 balls against Kuldeep Yadav and 30 off 35 balls against Ravichandran Ashwin.
There was precision in his aggression against spin. For instance, he struck Jadeja for a boundary through the third man region with a flattish delivery outside the off stump, simply playing the ball late, an approach quite simple but missing in many modern-day players. Every time he received a loose ball, he was there to punish it. Ashwin dished out a low full toss to him, another tricky delivery to hit. However, Ravindra smoked it over wide long-on for a six into the stands. His sweeps were authoritative, and drives played to perfection.
In his last 35 balls before lunch, he batted at a strike rate of 135. Southee, from the other end, also went unbeaten 49 at lunch off only 50 balls. Consequently, the runs flowed like a leaking tap, swelling New Zealand’s lead to 299 — the second-highest first-innings lead against India in India since 2010.
Ravindra’s brilliance against spin has come at a time when New Zealand batters have been struggling to score against spin. The Kiwis had averaged only 27.7 vs spin between the start of the second World Test Championship (WTC) cycle and the start of this match.
Given they are a team in transition, Ravindra becomes a leading prospect for the future.
Adding icing on the cake, this is also Ravindra’s second international hundred at his native Bengaluru. His scores at the Chinnaswamy Stadium now read 108 vs Pakistan (ODI), 42 vs Sri Lanka (ODI) and 104* vs India (Test).
On his Test debut in Kanpur three years ago, the southpaw scored 18* off 91 balls to save the match for New Zealand when there was just one wicket left. He has now put New Zealand miles ahead in the game, taking a completely different approach.
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