Opener Agarwal, who was in danger of losing his Test spot, smashes 120 not out to help India end Day One on 221-4
Mayank Agarwal is ecstatic after scoring a century against New Zealand at Wankhede yesterday. Pic/AFP
Until Thursday, Mayank Agarwal was the most likely candidate to be out of the playing XI to accommodate captain Virat Kohli, who was returning to the team for the second Test after being rested for most part of the New Zealand series.
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But after Friday’s fabulous knock of 120 not out he could pose a few more selection headaches for the Indian team management. Agarwal notched up his fourth Test hundred at the Wankhede Stadium.
No Rahane, Ishant, Jadeja
Lucky to keep his place after the Indian team were rocked by injuries to Ajinkya Rahane, Ishant Sharma and Ravindra Jadeja, Agarwal was the rock that not only provided resistance, but also pulled the hosts out of a difficult position.
India finished Day One on 221-4 despite New Zealand’s Mumbai-born left-arm spinner Ajaz Patel (4-73) threatening to run through the hosts.
A hit on the head in England saw Agarwal become the reserve opener after his statemate KL Rahul grabbed the opportunity in the four Tests there. However, with regular openers Rohit Sharma and Rahul not part of this series, Agarwal had four innings to prove his worth. In the Kanpur Test, he returned scores of 13 and 7, but on Friday he proved his mettle. “This innings was more about grit and determination, just to stick with the plan,” said Agarwal, who played a fire-and-ice knock.
Solid opening stand
While Shubman Gill put his power to good use during his 44, Agarwal was circumspect during the 80-run opening stand. Then, India lost Cheteshwar Pujara (0) and captain Kohli (0) in the space of four balls. Ajaz then got Gill to poke at an away-going delivery. And then, catching Pujara off-guard with a full delivery that disrupted his furniture. Ajaz’s next victim was Kohli, who was adjudged leg-before in a controversial manner. TV replays suggested it was bat first, but the third umpire did not find any ‘conclusive evidence’ to overturn the on-field umpire’s decision. Interestingly, the video umpire made the call even before checking ball-tracking, which seemed to have irked the India skipper. The ball, however, was going on to hit the stumps.
Agarwal and last-Test centurion Shreyas Iyer (18) added 80 for the fourth wicket before Ajaz got his fourth wicket.
Brief scores
India 221-4 (M Agarwal 120*, S Gill 44; A Patel 4-73) v NZ
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