2nd Test: India v New Zealand
India 239/7 (86.0 ov)
New Zealand
India won the toss and elected to bat
Since 2015-16, most of India's Tests at home have been played on pitches that were prone to turn in the first hour. Kanpur wasn't as extreme, but there was nothing there for the fast bowlers. New Zealand would have arrived in Kolkata expecting more of the same. The grass on the pitch could well have been arranged to spell "surprise." Kane Williamson was stuck in the dressing room with a fever, but his men gave him a get well card that read "Skipper, we applied pressure for longer" as they reduced India to 239 for 7.
Matt Henry helped them forget they had lost another toss. He courted the outside edge and Eden Gardens was only too willing a wingman. The entire square had been dug up and relaid for the new season and bowling back of a length posed a serious challenge to the batsman because of inconsistent bounce. Henry bowled Shikhar Dhawan in his first over of the match and then dismissed the in-form M Vijay with a beauty. Trent Boult set a trap for Virat Kohli and sprung it before the batsman could reach double-digits.
India needed someone capable of playing time. They lost three wickets in the morning session, but with the sun beating down, conditions would change. If a batsman could last the early stages, he could really cash in. Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane did for nearly 50 overs, each setting himself up for a century. But New Zealand didn't let them get to the landmark. In the final session of play, Neil Wagner had Pujara caught at short cover for 87 and Jeetan Patel deceived Rahane with pace to trap him lbw for 77.
Part of New Zealand's success was down to their ability to keep the runs down. Even when they couldn't pick up any wickets in the second session, they allowed India only 79 runs in 31 overs. By doing so, they were able to make sure India couldn't bat them out of the Test as they had done in the second innings in Kanpur. Ross Taylor's captaincy and field placements were important in that regard. He had catching men on the drive and the flick, knowing the pitch was offering extra bounce. His bowlers were either wide outside off stump, testing the batsmen's patience, or at the stumps, knowing they had protection on the leg side, where India could secure only 12 boundaries. These were either scored off overpitched deliveries - Pujara's flicks early in his innings - or really good shots - Rahane's flick in the 61st over after getting on top of a Santner delivery turning away from him.
India's run-rate struggled to get over three, but they had two batsmen who could lay the foundation for a big first innings. The thing was, when they made the mistake, New Zealand pounced on it. Pujara drove on the up, was caught by Martin Guptill, on his birthday, and a 141-run partnership was broken. Rahane was trapped by a quicker ball from Jeetan Patel after he had forced the batsman back into his crease. The 36-year old offspinner had long abandoned hopes of playing international cricket again. He was chosen ahead of Ish Sodhi despite having only a "day and a bit" to acclimatise. But his control of line and ability to drift the ball made him dangerous.
Only four batsmen reached double-figures for India. Dhawan's comeback was limited to 10 balls, Henry making him drag a cut onto his stumps. The 24-year old fast bowler repeatedly beat the right-handers' outside edge by straightening the ball off the seam and eventually dismissed Vijay by going a bit wider of the crease, although that may just have been a quirk of fortune because Henry had just been warned for running onto the danger area by umpire Rod Tucker.
Kohli had come out had come out seeming determined not to let the bowling get the better of him. He had made a point to prepare for the ball bouncing awkwardly and was quite circumspect when Wagner banged it in. He was 5 off 24 balls when, from the other end, Boult presented a full, but not quite overpitched, delivery. It was hit through the covers for four. The width on offer had triggered the run-scoring instincts in Kohli. In trying to repeat the stroke, to a ball even wider outside off stump, a ball that he probably could have left, he nicked to gully where Tom Latham took a super catch over his head.
Henry finished the day on a high for New Zealand with the second new ball, pinning R Ashwin lbw in the 84th over, although replays indicated it may have slid down leg. They would know, though, that India's bowlers are capable of being as disciplined as they were and they have to win without their best batsman to stay alive in the series.
1st ODI
Pakistan 284/9 (49/49 ov)
West Indies 175 (38.4/49 ov, target 287)
Pakistan won by 111 runs (D/L method)
The 21-year-old Babar Azam enhanced his promising reputation with a maiden ODI hundred against West Indies on Friday. That, sandwiched between Sharjeel Khan's half-century, and a late cameo from Imad Wasim, led Pakistan to 284 for 9 in a match reduced to 49-overs-a-side because of a floodlight failure. Chasing 287, courtesy the Duckworth-Lewis revisions, West Indies sleepwalked their way, much like they had done in the T20Is, to 175, and suffered another demoralising defeat.
There is an air of serenity around Azam. He is technically correct in defence and drives with the head over the ball. He was among very few to receive glowing appraisals from coach Mickey Arthur after the disastrous tour of England.
In Sharjah he walked in to face the second ball of the match, after a Shannon Gabriel beauty that had Azhar Ali nicking behind for a duck. It took a stunning catch from Kieron Pollard at the edge of the wide long-on boundary to ultimately dismiss Azam in the 43rd over for 120 off 131 balls. In between, there was a display of solid strokes coupled with risk-free cricket and a stroke of luck - he survived a close lbw appeal off Sulieman Benn early in his innings. He lugged 70 of his runs through ones and twos: excellent running in humid conditions.
Azam first added 82 for the second wicket with Sharjeel, and then 99 for the fourth with Sarfraz Ahmed. Wary of the seam movement generated by Jason Holder and Gabriel, Azam played copybook cricket more often than not. It wasn't until Sharjeel cut loose that Pakistan began to lift the scoring rate - he clattered 44 of Pakistan's 60 in the Powerplay.
West Indies' Powerplay, on the other hand, was a crawl. If they hoped to stop the rot at the top of the order by introducing a debutant in Kraigg Brathwaite, who had played 31 Tests before this game, they were in for a reality check. They managed all of two boundaries in their first ten overs, both supplied by Johnson Charles before he was dismissed by Mohammad Amir.
After posing a threat with a bevy of away-going deliveries from over the wicket, Amir had switched his angle to around the wicket and coaxed the ball to straighten enough to take the outside edge. West Indies had to wait 30 balls for their next boundary, which was also Kraigg Brathwaite's first, off the 34th ball he faced.
Kraigg Brathwaite's poor debut ended when he angled Hasan Ali behind in the 13th over for 14 off 38 balls. In fact, it was the second-slowest, in terms of strike rate, by a West Indian on ODI debut. Mohammad Nawaz, the left-arm spinner, then unravelled the chase with three quick strikes, including wickets of Darren Bravo and Denesh Ramdin. When Kieron Pollard sliced a catch to deep point, Pakistan were 99 for 5 and the asking rate had crept towards eight. Marlon Samuels briefly swung his way to 46 before West Indies were bowled out in 38.4 overs. They just couldn't find a way to adapt, again.
Sharjeel, though, had adapted well enough, even as West Indies blocked his favoured leg-side region during Pakistan's innings. He responded to the seamers' modus operandi of testing in the channel outside off by hitting a flurry of boundaries straight down the ground. He scythed Gabriel over mid-off for a brace of fours before shovelling Carlos Brathwaite and Holder over long-on.
The introduction of spin, however, slowed Pakistan down. Only 65 runs came off the next 15 overs for the loss of Sharjeel and Shoaib Malik. Benn, who bowled slower through the air as opposed to firing it in, provided West Indies with a breakthrough when he had Sharjeel skewing an outside edge to short third man for a 43-ball 54. Twenty balls later, Sunil Narine found Shoaib Malik's outside edge, which was held at slip.
In between the two wickets, Azam endured the first of the two insecure moments during his knock. Benn slid in an arm-ball, which rapped him on the pad. Ahsan Raza, the on-field umpire, shot down the appeal, but Holder insisted on a review. Hawk-Eye showed that the ball would carry onto hit the top of the stumps, which meant umpire's call was upheld. Then in the 27th over, Azam escaped when Carlos Brathwaite failed to effect a direct hit off his own bowling following a mix-up with Sarfraz.
Sarfraz, himself, was reprieved on 5 when Ramdin fluffed a stumping chance. He proceeded to keep the score ticking with Azam. Just as he threatened to cut loose, Holder duped him with a slower ball.
Azam, however, carried on to raise his ton off 119 balls, having been on 50 off 74 balls. He reached three figures when he drove Narine through the covers in the 38th over. He celebrated the landmark by leaping in the air before performing the sajdah.
Azam then spanked Benn and Narine for leg-side sixes, but when he attempted one against Carlos Brathwaite, Pollard snaffled the big hit. A floodlight failure, which lasted for over an hour, handed West Indies some respite. Pakistan were limited to 24 for 3 in 4.3 overs upon resumption, but it was only crumbs of consolation for the losing side.
1st ODI
Australia 294/9 (50.0 ov)
South Africa 295/4 (36.2 ov)
South Africa won by 6 wickets (with 82 balls remaining)
Quinton de Kock became the holder of South Africa's second-highest individual score in ODI cricket with a career-best 178 as his side eased to a series opening victory over Australia. De Kock steered South Africa to the third-highest successful chase at SuperSport Park and ensured they drew first blood in a weekend of clashes against Australia. Sandwiched between ODIs on Friday and Sunday is a Rugby Championship fixture on Saturday. All the matches take place on the Highveld, de Kock's stomping ground, and on Friday night, he owned it.
None of the Australian bowlers were spared de Kock's aggression. He took on pace and spin, anything on the pads or overpitched, the short ball and the wide ball. His was an innings that started with impeccable timing and placement and turned into belligerent bludgeoning, especially on the leg side. More than two-thirds of de Kock's runs came in that area, including nine of his eleven sixes and he made Australia's 294 appear utterly inadequate.
On a fairly flat pitch and a fast outfield, Australia should have breached 300 and, given their start, could have been eyeing many more. Australia were 88 for 1 in the 13th over before Andile Phehlukwayo pulled them back. He took 3 for 16 in four overs and finished with a career-best 4 for 44 in just his second ODI to lead a seam attack whose experience trio of Dale Steyn, Wayne Parnell and Kagiso Rabada all had off days.
The South African seamers' inconsistencies in length suited Australia's almost-reckless approach. Five of their top six got starts but only George Bailey converted his. He scored a third half-century in four innings and shared in a 79-run seventh wicket stand with John Hastings, whose fifty was his first in international cricket, to take Australia close to 300 but not close enough to challenge South Africa.
De Kock was authoritative from the start. He flicked a Hastings delivery on the legs into the stands and followed up with a flog through point to announce his intent. South Africa's fifty came up inside seven overs and Rilee Rossouw, de Kock's opening partner who filled in for an ill Hashim Amla, had only contributed 17 of those runs.
Rossouw did not remain an understudy for too long. He plundered three boundaries off each of Mitchell Marsh and Scott Boland to catch up to de Kock and the pair were on 43 each, with the score on 87 after 10 overs.
De Kock's fifty came first, off 38 balls, with a pull off Travis Head. Rossouw's followed in much quieter fashion, a single, but it came off the 36th ball. At 120 without loss after 15 overs, Australia were all but out of the contest and they had not even introduced their best bowler.
Adam Zampa was brought on in the 18th over, after Rossouw and de Kock had destroyed Scott Boland's figures by taking 18 runs off his fourth over, and had immediate success. Zampa's first ball was a legbreak, Rossouw brought out the reverse sweep and was trapped in front.
De Kock was on 82 when Rossouw was dismissed and had got there by playing the ball late and using deft, albeit powerful touches, but when Faf du Plessis joined him, he switched gears. He thumped a low full toss from Daniel Worrall to mid off, in a rare example of playing a shot down the ground instead of square, and then reached his hundred, off 74 balls, with an almighty pull over midwicket.
Zampa came under attack as well and de Kock took three boundaries off his fourth over and three sixes off the first three balls of his sixth, With each one, there was a suspicion de Kock might emulate Herschelle Gibbs' six sixes in an over. Gibbs was part of the commentary team, and looked on as de Kock went past his own highest score of 175 by drilling Marsh through the covers. Those were the last runs de Kock scored before holing out, 11 runs short of overtaking Gary Kirsten, who holds South Africa's highest individual score of 188.
It was left to Farhaan Behardien and David Miller to finish off after du Plessis and JP Duminy were dismissed cheaply. The wickets won't matter much to South Africa after they won with 13.4 overs to spare.
De Kock's performance completely overshadowed Phehlukwayo, but he emerged as South Africa's best bowler on the night. He broke through at a crucial time, when Aaron Finch flicked a short ball to fine leg where Wayne Parnell caught it low down.. Four deliveries later, Phehlukwayo had Steve Smith trapped lbw, missing an attempted glance. And three overs after that, had Marsh caught behind by a diving de Kock.
Imran Tahir, the only other South African to concede at under six runs an over, had Travis Head stumped by a googly and Australia were five-down just over halfway in their innings and in danger of not batting out their overs. Bailey's fifty was his third in four innings while Hastings' was his first against a South African attack that, Phehlukwayo and Tahir aside, struggled for consistency.
That may not be South Africa's main concern ahead of the Sunday game though. Instead, they will be closely monitoring Steyn. Although he bowled his full complement of overs, Steyn left the field twice and was seen clutching the shoulder he broke last summer several times.
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