IND vs NZ 3rd Test Day 1 Highlights: India 86/4, Shubman Gill and Rishabh Pant unbeaten at stumps in Mumbai

First, it was Yashasvi Jaiswal who tried to reverse sweep a ball and got himself bowled and then it was Mohammed Siraj who came in as a night watchman and missed a ball that pitched on the middle and turned slightly onto off and Siraj missed the ball completely and the was trapped in front of the wicket. Out of nowhere just when it looked like India was running away with this game New Zealand pulled it back. Virat Kohli has walked into the middle it is going to be a tricky 10 minutes for the Indian talisman and Shubman Gill. 

We are 20 minutes away from the close of the play and it is hard to understand why Latham has not introduced Ish Sodhi. Yes, leg-spinners do need a little older ball to get help however, going to your fifth bowler ahead of the main leg-spinner might be a dent in his confidence. Even Rachin Ravindra seems to be warming up but there are no signs of Ish Sodhi yet. With the bounce in the Wankhede pitch Sodhi if he can get a couple right will put doubts in the minds of the Indian batters. Latham has been spot-on with all his captaincy moves but seems like this is something he letting away for too long. 

Shubman Gill is struggling here like he did in Pune. There seems to be an issue with his technique facing spinners when the pitch is helping spin. Similar to Conway who manages to get a gap between pad and bat to seamers Gill is doing the same against spin. However, tricky times these are for the Indian batters and a few plays and misses should be allowed because of the heat under which they have fielded in the morning. Having said that he needs to survive this period and also come back in the morning to score big runs to keep India in this game. 

Latham has brought in Glenn Phillips ahead of Ish Sodhi here which is an interesting move. It might be because of having a left-hander in the middle however, it would have been not a bad choice to bring in the leg-spinner only here first as he has not played a game in the series, and bringing him early into the game might give him a bit of wiggle room to work with his lines and lengths when batters are relatively new at the crease, yes maybe Jaiswal is away but Shubman Gill is still finding his feet on this wicket and given the amount of time left in the day India will also not be that adventurous against the bowlers to get runs. 

New Zealand is deploying a different trap to Jaiswal something which we have not seen at the international level. They have packed the off-side field with a couple of cover-catchers closer to him and then a point and third man squarer as well. It seems like they want him to drive on the off-side and Henry will slip in an odd slower ball to check the grips of Jaiswal if he is holding with tight grips or softer one. Whatever may be the case Jaiswal has not been as fluent as he has been on Sunday in the chase which might be attributed to the situation of the game however, he needs to take his chances from time to time. 

Another failure for the Indian skipper, his poor form continued the ball took off and Rohit trying to work the ball on the leg side got the edge to first slip. Once again hanging his weight on the backfoot trying to play with his hands irrespective of the swing of the ball is causing downfall. This is something which he needs to sort out before going to Australia as he will be tested with more and more these kinds of deliveries. Shubman Gill has walked into the middle and he needs to stitch a partnership with Yashasvi Jaiswal to keep India in the game. 

Decent start for India 20 minutes into the innings. They have not lost a wicket yet and have seemed fairly competent to handle the seamers. Ajaz has been brought into the attack and he has been deployed from the same end where he picked up 10 wickets in an innings last time. However, they have taken O Rourke out of attack may be Latham have made his move a bit too early. O Rourke would extract a bit of extra bounce out of this surface and if an odd ball will move a little that will create a lot of trouble to the Indian batters. 

Without Santner the New Zealand attack might not have the same potency as they did in Pune however they do have good options in their arsenal, they still do have Ajaz Patel in the side who managed to pick 14 games when last time New Zealand played here also there is Ish Sodhi who is a much improved red ball bowler in recent times and most importantly he is tall and has bounce to work with on this surface which is something India have not been used to facing or test with in recent times. Apart from that O Rourke and Matt Henry will continue to bowl probing lines and Test the defences. 

Matt Henry takes the new ball for New Zealand and as we have seen today morning there is not much for the fast bowlers. However, O Rourke is a tall bowler and he might extract a lot more from this surface. On the other hand, Rohit Sharma needs to get runs in this inning. Like Ashwin with the ball, both Rohit and Kohli have looked out of sorts. A few runs here will give them a confidence boost going into the Australia series. However, it is not going to be easy as the Indian skipper as he would be tired from captaining the side under pressure from morning in the sulking heat. 

Well first it was Mitchell who tried to dab one through the third man and was taken by Rohit at slip who took a sharp chance then it was Ajaz Patel who did not offer a shot Sundar's straight delivery and was deemed LBW. Congratulations to Ravindra Jadeja for his 14th five wicket-haul. 235 is all New Zealand could get which once again not a total that India should be intimidated by. They need to keep their heads and bat better than they did in the first innings in Pune. The two Test matches so far would have shown them the premium of first innings runs especially in subcontinent conditions. 

Mitchell has changed gears here. He has hit a couple of gigantic sixes against Washington Sundar if Rohit does not come up with a tactic Mitchell might add to his sixes tally here. Sundar too after his couple of wickets has been inconsistent is it the heat which is getting the better of him or did he just lose his rhythm after his first spell where he struggled with no-balls and his run-up is something only he can answer whatever may be the case the bowler bowling from the other end needs to support Jadeja who is bowling splendidly. If he won't get support he too will become ineffective. 

Ravindra Jadeja picks up a five-wicket haul here. First, it was Ish Sodhi who tried to defend the ball on the line and missed the one which pitched on middle and leg and hit him in front of the pad and then it was Matt Henry who got bowled instead of getting LBW to a similar deliver. It is the 14th five-wicket haul for Jadeja and what a spell this has been. He was the last bowler to be introduced however, once he got his first wicket it was only a matter of time before he picked five wickets and given the way he is bowling it won't be a surprise if he ends up with a seven-wicket haul. 

Daryl Mitchell is looking fresh here. The 20-minute break here seems to have done him a world of good. He is fresh again and taking his doubles and singles with a lot more intent. He needs to make a big score here from New Zealand's perspective if they want to take advantage in this game. They have gone past 200 another 100 runs from here on will put a lot of pressure on India however, for that to happen Mitchell needs to stay till the end of this innings. One thing in his favour is that Indian bowlers will be tired now compared to the morning when he came into bat. 

Sundar started after Tea for India and Jadeja from the other end. They have been the two best bowlers for India on the day so far. One challenge for Rohit is how does he bring Ashwin into the game. Into the game is not just giving him a few overs but getting him to pick wickets like he is used to it. At the moment while the other two spinners are bagging their wickets Ashwin has fallen behind. Once again it is also a testament to India's combination of playing five bowlers all the time. Ashwin bowling this way without either a Sundar or Jadeja would be a disaster for India.

We are in for the final session. This session more than skill is a test of Indian fielders' and bowlers' stamina. Especially spinners who bowled a lot since morning. Rohit might bring seamers into the game a bit in this session. 

Rachin Ravindra, a New Zealand cricketer with Indian roots, shared a heartwarming anecdote about his family's mixed loyalties during his recent Test century in Bengaluru. While his immediate family resides in New Zealand, his extended family in India faces a dilemma, torn between their love for India and their pride in Rachin's achievements. This unique situation highlights the global nature of cricket and the emotional connections it fosters across borders. (Read more)

It's Tea it is once again a shared session. It is Ravindra Jadeja's spell that has pulled India back into the game here or else New Zealand was cruising. Ish Sodhi has walked into the middle his average suggests that he can hang on for a bit however, whether can he survive on this surface is something to be seen. One notable thing is the pitch is turning a lot more than what happened in Pune on Day 1. India needs to plan their batting better than the lessons they have learned from Pune. It will be another absorbing evening session in the series do join us after the break. 

Ashwin has been once again disappointing in this spell it is not that he has bowled badly or anything but he just doesn't seem to have that oomph that he usually has. Someone who has played as long as him you are allowed to have a few ups and downs in the career but it is the timing of it. Not only he has had an ordinary series but India has lost it as well and he will be going to Australia if things were to go south for the team and his bowling being like it has been in these series given his age there might be some decisions to make. As we update Jadeja picks Phillips. 

Glenn Phillips did play a good hand in the second innings in Pune however, there seems to be an inherent problem with his technique in playing spin. Unlike most New Zealand batters who are picking the ball of the hand Phillips and Blundell to some extent seem to be rare players who are picking the ball of the surface. Ben Stokes and a lot of English batters who came earlier this year had a lot of trouble playing that way and it has not been surprising to see Phillips limited to success in the subcontinent with the bat especially given his range of shots and ability to counter-attack and take the game away from the opposition. 

Ravindra Jadeja has this tendency to make the batters feel like there is not a lot happening and suddenly pick wickets in clusters. If compared to the Anderson and Broad partnership. Ashwin is more the Anderson in it and Jadeja is the Broad part of it. For the first 11 overs of his spell though he has beaten the bat a few times Jadeja looked like he could not pick a wicket however, once he got his first he got the next one immediately and now seems like he will pick one every ball. A similar thing happened in Pune once he got his first he picked up four wickets in no time. 

Ravindra Jadeja gets the breakthrough here finally and it is Will Young. The batter tried to play the ball coming forward and Jadeja's delivery pitched on off-stump and took the edge of the batter straight to first slip Rohit Sharma. Much needed breakthrough for India as things were looking like getting away from them. Tom Blundell has walked into the middle the surface is such that one wicket might bring two to three quickly. As we update Ravindra Jadeja picks Tom Blundell that delivery has turned from leg-stump and it is quite concerning. 

Ashwin has come onto bowl here for a second spell. He was a mixed bag in the morning session and would be hoping to bowl well in this session. Once again it is the pace which is Ashwin not getting right at the first level which is making batters play him with ease. The moment he is slowing up the pace and tossing the ball up New Zealand batters have not been afraid to sweep him. It was the case against England as well however, with clever field sets Rohit did find a way then but New Zealand batters have been lot more selective in playing there sweeps and picking their gaps hence the troubles. 

We have reached the water break in the noon session and it has been New Zealand's hour so far. They have continued to build the partnership and kept the bowlers at bay. Slowly and steadily India has gone back to the old habits of letting the singles away and waiting for the mistakes from batters end. Mitchell too who always looked like a cat on Hot Tin Roof when he started his innings through the series managed to get himself a start. India needs to find a way to break this partnership instead of waiting for the mistakes to come from somewhere. 

New Zealand's Will Young doesn't seem to be much flustered at the moment with the way things are panning out in the middle. Yes. it is hot but he is not taking as many chances as he did in the morning. It may be due to tiredness he wants to be more picky with his shots or it might be just the case of pitch starting to do a bit more. Whatever may be the case if he manages to get through this session post-Tea Indian bowlers would be tired and he can start playing his shots yet again. His temperament and concentration powers have been absolutely brilliant. 

Mohammed Siraj has been brought into the attack. It is quite hot and dry maybe it is a ploy from Rohit to see if there is any reverse swing on offer nevertheless things were getting a bit monotonous and Rohit decided to make the play before it got too late which is where he lacked in Pune. However, the issue with Siraj has been his pace. His pace has gone down drastically on average and so has been his wicket-tacking ability. He is heavily reliant on what the surface is offering him and when there is not much with that pace he would be not as threatening as he was once. 

Sundar has bowled five no-balls so far. There seems to be a discomfort from the end he is bowling he stops his action a few times as well. The end on which Jadeja is bowling there is a lot more turn on offer while there is a not lot of turn from Sundar's end but there is enough. However, early in the day, Sundar was seen marking his run-up from Jadeja's end however, for some reason, Rohit had given him the opposite end. The no-balls in red-ball cricket might not be as cruel as in white-ball cricket until a wicket falls of it. It increasingly feels like Rohit might and should consider changing Sundar's end here. 

From New Zealand's perspective it is just not doing anything silly. Not doing anything silly doesn't mean they just keep defending everything but try to find the right balance between attack and defend instead of taking either of the extreme approaches. Which is what Will Young has done and to some extent Tom Latham in the morning. It is the template on how to bat on this wicket. Maybe the batters need to increase the intent to attack as the game goes on but for now, it is the right tempo and one that India can take note off, especially after how they capitulated in the first innings in Pune in the name of attacking cricket. 

Sundar and Jadeja have taken the ball from either end for India. Given the way they bowled in the backend of the first session in tandem, we might see a long spell from them in the noon session as well. Once again it is not just who bowls but Rohit Sharma also needs to be proactive with his captaincy. In the morning he was trying a few things and was aggressive compared to how he let things drift away in Pune he needs to maintain that in this session as well. As we update Will Young gets to his half-century. Excellent knock by the Kiwi number three. 

We have another absorbing session on the cards. It is also very hot here in Mumbai and in addition to skill, this session will demand concentration from the batters as well. Rohit needs to keep chopping and changing his bowlers so that they don't get tired soon.

Rachin Ravindra, a New Zealand cricketer with Indian roots, shared a heartwarming anecdote about his family's mixed loyalties during his recent Test century in Bengaluru. While his immediate family resides in New Zealand, his extended family in India faces a dilemma, torn between their love for India and their pride in Rachin's achievements. This unique situation highlights the global nature of cricket and the emotional connections it fosters across borders. (Read more)

The contrasting moods of the Indian cricket team after their recent series defeat. While Abhishek Nayar emphasizes the team's positive attitude and their ability to bounce back, the on-field behavior of the players suggests a more serious and focused approach. They are determined to learn from their mistakes and improve their performance in the upcoming matches. (Read more)

The Indian cricket team is facing significant challenges after a recent series defeat, particularly their vulnerability to spin bowling. Key players like Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and KL Rahul are under pressure to regain form. The team needs to quickly address their weaknesses and prepare for the upcoming tough tour of Australia. (Read more from Sandip G)

That's the morning session done and it is a shared season. Washington Sundar is bowling beautifully yet again. He has already got the right pace to the surface and lengths too. He is getting nice drift and subtle turn it is just enough to get the batters out. As per New Zealand, Will Young is playing a lovely hand here. He has always got a start in the series however, failed to convert and once again he has looked solid. Absorbing morning session this and the Test match have been set up nicely do join us for the post-lunch session. 

We are five minutes away from lunch. India has done well for the most part they would love to pick one more but having said that after losing the toss trailing 2-0 down in the series it is a good start. The oddball is turning a lot it will be interesting to see if it is due to the pitch being made that way or the moisture of the morning session. New Zealand too would be reasonably happy with the way things are here. They don't need a 400-450 total here. 300-330 would be more than enough to compete in the game and put a lot of pressure on India.

Jadeja has been introduced here. It must be said that compared to Ashwin, Sundar has looked a lot more threatening in this game which is not very usual but it has been the case throughout the series so far. He seems to be a bit out of sorts here Ashwin. It is not very often in recent times Ashwin has gone through a spell of games in India where his performances have been middling and if the Bangladesh series were not to be considered Ashwin did have a middling series against England. He only got better in the later part of the series when England was struggling as a team and once again this series he has been inconsistent. 

That is another peach of a delivery from Sundar to pick Rachin Ravindra The ball was pitched on the middle stump and turned sharply away from the right-hander to hit the top of the off-stump it is an action replay of what has happened with Tom Latham. This is high-quality spin bowling from Sundar. He has had a fabulous Test match in Pune and this one he started exceptionally well. It is his accuracy of lines and length with subtle variations which is doing the damage. Though India has lost the series they have found a red-ball star for the future. 

Washington Sundar got rid of Tom Latham. The batter played for the ball coming back in however, the ball went straight with the angle and hit the top of the off-stump. Once again superb bowling from Sundar. It is the subtle variations at the crease and of the seam position that is what have been the key to Sundar's success. Rachin Ravindra has walked into the middle and he is the most important batter from an Indian perspective who can inflict damage. He already played a couple of brilliant innings in the series and India would like to pick for a low score here. 

Will Young danced down the track to hit the ball through the mid-wicket for a six of Ashwin. Once again the intensions against the off-spinner seem to be clear here for the New Zealand batters. He needs to do something here Ashwin yes, he did bowl well in the first innings in Pune but he went for runs in the second innings and today the narrative has not been set yet hence it is important he strikes early and sets the tone for the day instead of New Zealand batters once again dominating the narrative of going after the spinners. Sundar too has been brought into the attack he was the reliable one in the previous Test and has to do the same today. 

We had a lengthy water break here. It is warm and humid here. It is going to be challenging for both batters and bowlers to keep up with the heat. Rohit needs to give bowlers shorter bursts to keep them fresh through the day. Even a spinner's wet palms might make it difficult for the bowlers to grip the ball. However, the effect of humidity will be seen more in New Zealand batters than in the Indian bowlers. Tom Latham who batted for an hour already seems like has batted an entire day in New Zealand. It is going to be a long day in the field for players. 

Tom Latham is looking good here again. He played a handy knock in the second innings in Pune pushing India completely out of the game and once again has started well here. The way the series went for him and Rohit Sharma has been quite contrasting. One common thing though both batting efforts seem to have been replicative of their batting forms. As New Zealand's performance as a team improved Latham the batter started to get into the groove and as per Rohit who came into the series with poor form continued to be in poor form. He would wonder if his dismissal in Bengaluru was the turning point in the series and contrasting fortunes of both sides. 

First signs of spin here. R Ashwin has been brought into the attack it is an important game for both Ashwin and Jadeja especially the former. He had a good last tour to Australia however, in this series his powers seem to be waning and the tour Down Under this time might be his last one hence he would love to pick a few wickets bowl economically trouble the batters, and get some confidence into his bowling ahead of the marquee series so that he could have the same impact as 2020/21 series. And it is the same for Jadeja both with the bat and ball it is going to be an important game.

Akash Deep settled into a nice rhythm here. He is bowling in and around that off-stump channel and creating the doubt in the minds of the batter. It seems like there is not much in the wicket however, similar to Mohammed Shami he seems to have the skill of using the crease well and seam the ball around with his wrist position which is terrific. However, pace is something which he needs to be wary of as the seam on the SG ball and the seam on the Kookaburra ball are two different things and even Mohammed Shami has had his fair share of troubles in his earlier tours to Australia. (After 6.4 overs NZ 23/1)

Akash Deep manages to pick the first wicket here. The ball pitched in and moved back into Conway. The southpaw has had the tendency of having a gap between bat and pad through the series and today the ball sneaked through and hit his pads he was given out on-field however, decided to send it upstairs. But there were three reds. India does manage to get an early breakthrough here and it is Conway who has played a key part in nullifying the likes of Ashwin and Jadeja in this series with his sweeps. Will Young has come into the middle. (After 4.3 overs NZ 16/1)

Both Indian seamers are bowling at a friendly pace with this new ball. Jasprit Bumrah seems to be the quickest among three of them and on a wicket which does not have much of a swing and seam moment, the bowlers need some pace on their side. One thing which is difficult to understand is a drop in the pace of Mohammed Siraj. He used to bowl around 140 however there seems to be a significant 10 KPH change in his bowling. Akash Deep also seems to be bowling around 130-135 but it is not a pace that will trouble the Australians in Australia, even New Zealand here. (After 3 overs NZ 12/0)

We are done with the opening over. Mohammed Siraj has taken the new ball and he started well. He kept bowling in and around the off-stump channel. However, one noticeable thing is that his pace seems to be a bit slower here or maybe he is looking for some swing and seam moment early in the piece. Akash Deep has taken the ball from the other end. He did not have much to do in Pune and it will likely be a similar tale here and he has to make the most of the limited bowling spell he gets here. (After 1.2 overs NZ 1/0)

It is going to be another cracking game of cricket. India starts on the backfoot yet again after losing the toss however, they can make it up with a good bowling performance and most importantly some proactive captaincy from Rohit Sharma. 

If you look at this pitch, there's a little bit of moisture in it and hence the dark brownish colour. As you look at the other pitches in the square, you can see the difference in colour, it's slightly orangish. That's how this pitch will eventually become. It's about understanding what happens when moisture is there. There'll be a little bit of turn at the start and as the day progresses, it might get slightly better to bat on. But towards the end of the day's play and definitely tomorrow and as the game progresses, there'll be a lot more turn. If the team winning the toss, doesn't bat first, I'd be very surprised. In the last five Test matches, 84% of the wickets have been picked up by the spinners. There'll be a little bit of help for the fast bowlers as it always is in Mumbai. There is something in it for everybody. As the game progresses, it'll tilt towards the spinners. Days one and two will be better to bat on. As the game progresses, it's going to be hard work for the batters.

Tom Latham(c), Devon Conway, Will Young, Rachin Ravindra, Daryl Mitchell, Tom Blundell(w), Glenn Phillips, Ish Sodhi, Matt Henry, Ajaz Patel, William ORourke

Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rohit Sharma(c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant(w), Sarfaraz Khan, Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar, Ravichandran Ashwin, Akash Deep, Mohammed Siraj

We understand that we haven't played well in this series. Looks like a good pitch. Hopefully we can restrict them as quickly as possible. Our focus is on this Test match. Bumrah is not well, Siraj comes in for him.

We are gonna have a bat. Looks a good surface, hopefully put a good total on the board. What we did in Bangalore was great, we had to switch quickly to Pune and nothing changes. A new opportunity this game. It's about adapting to the surface as quickly as possible. Santner has got a side strain. Ish Sodhi comes in. Henry is back for Southee.

"Obviously, it's hurting. And it's good that it's hurting. Because it should hurt. Because every time you lose a game, be it at home or be it away from home, it should hurt. And that hurt will make us better. Sometimes people say that it should not hurt. But it should hurt when you're playing for your country. What's wrong in being in that position? And the more, especially for the youngsters, it's hurting them, I'm sure they're going to push themselves to keep getting better. Because that is exactly what we want them to be. Pushing themselves every day to be a better cricketer. And to do something special. Because if we have results like what we had in Kanpur, then we might as well have results like this. And take that hurt and keep moving forward"

Tom Latham, Devon Conway, Will Young, Rachin Ravindra, Daryl Mitchell, Tom Blundell, Glenn Phillips, Mitchell Santner, Tim Southee/Matt Henry, Will O’Rourke, Ajaz Patel

Rohit Sharma, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Sarfaraz Khan, Rishabh Pant, Ravindra Jadeja, R Ashwin, Washington Sundar, Akash Deep, Mohammad Siraj

Hello and welcome to our live blog for the third Test between India and New Zealand. Because of a finish in three days in Pune Indian team had quite the time to reflect and reassess what had happened however, losing a series after 12 years is not a feat Rohit would want to associate himself as captain but getting whitewashed for the first time would be even worse. It will be an interesting game folks do stay with us for all updates.