Daryl Mitchell spoils KL Rahul’s gutsy ton as New Zealand level series to set up high-stakes Indore thriller vs India

Earlier, KL Rahul had held a faltering innings together on a sluggish surface with a gutsy hundred, guiding India to 284/7. Rahul produced a gritty unbeaten 112 off 92 balls which included 11 fours and two sixes, forging vital partnerships in the second half and snatching control from the Kiwis who had ran through India’s formidable batting line-up earlier.

New Zealand had seized control with discipline and some stroke of luck as India had slipped from 99 for one to 118 for four before the halfway mark, leaving Rahul and others with the task to rebuild on a track that remained tricky for batters due to its lack of pace and occasional low bounce.

The other major contribution from captain Shubman Gill (56 off 53), who collected his second half-century in as many games. With the Kiwi fast bowlers dominating the early exchanges by maintaining tight line and lengths, it took as many as 11 balls for Rohit Sharma (24) to get off the mark with a single.

With India in need of stability, local hero Ravindra Jadeja (27) walked out amid loud cheers and played his part well in a 73-run stand for the fifth wicket with Rahul.
However, Jadeja too was beaten by one that stopped a little on him as he hit one back to Bracewell for a low catch.

With Nitish Kumar Reddy (20) in row, Rahul added another 57 for the sixth wicket before the comeback all-rounder too fell for a slow, short ball from Zak Foulkes.