Washington Sundar delivered a remarkable performance, claiming a career-best 7 wickets for 59 runs, as New Zealand collapsed from 197 for 3 to be bowled out for 259 on the opening day of the second Test in Pune. India ended the day at 16 for 1, trailing by 243 runs.
Sundar’s achievement marked the first five-wicket haul for an Indian spinner at this venue, overshadowing half-centuries from Devon Conway and Rachin Ravindra earlier in the day.
Drafted into the squad just days before the match, Sundar replaced Kuldeep Yadav in the playing XI. India also made two additional changes, bringing in Akash Deep and Shubman Gill for Mohammed Siraj and KL Rahul.
New Zealand started strongly, hitting boundaries against Akash Deep while Jasprit Bumrah maintained tight control from the other end. However, R Ashwin’s introduction in the eighth over proved decisive, trapping Tom Latham leg before with a delivery that straightened slightly.
Despite the spinners dominating early on, New Zealand’s batters found run-scoring relatively straightforward without taking many risks. The slow pitch allowed Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, and Washington to operate at high speeds. They consistently beat the bat and struck the pads, yet the batters felt safe for the most part.
Will Young’s dismissal was unfortunate, as an Ashwin delivery spun past him and brushed his glove, leading Sarfaraz Khan at short leg to encourage Rohit Sharma to take the review. Meanwhile, Conway and Ravindra, in fine form, forced the Indian spinners to work hard for their wickets. After lunch, Conway attacked Bumrah, reaching his half-century with a crisp drive off a half-volley and following it up with two more boundaries in the same over.
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However, just as Conway looked poised for a big score, he chased a half-tracker from Ashwin and edged it to the wicketkeeper, handing the offspinner his third wicket.
For a significant period—3 hours and 45 minutes—New Zealand appeared settled, despite losing three wickets. This changed dramatically just 15 minutes before tea, starting with Ravindra’s dismissal, bowled by a sharply turning delivery from Washington. Tom Blundell soon followed, bowled in Washington’s next over, shifting momentum firmly in India’s favor as they headed into the break.
In the second session, despite a brief resurgence from New Zealand, including a six from Ravindra off Jadeja, the lack of moisture and increased variation in the spinners’ pace led to a batting collapse. Washington, who consistently tested the off-stump with his offbreaks, capitalized on the situation. He trapped Mitchell leg before and had Glenn Phillips caught by Ashwin at long-off. Tim Southee, Ajaz Patel, and Mitchell Santner all fell victim to his flight and turn, with their stumps knocked over in quick succession.
Washington collected four wickets in his last four overs, swiftly mopping up the tail. Remarkably, all ten wickets fell to offspinners. Although India gained a significant advantage, they faced challenges as well. Rohit Sharma was out bowled for a duck by an away-moving delivery from Tim Southee.
As play concluded for the day, Shubman Gill and Yashasvi Jaiswal remained unbeaten, though not without troubles, heading into stumps on Thursday.
Brief Scores:
New Zealand 259 (Devon Conway 77, Rachin Ravindra 65; Washington Sundar 7-59, R Ashwin 2-64) lead India 16/1 by 243 runs.
