Mitchell Santner became only the second New Zealand spinner to take two five-wicket hauls in a Test cricket match. The 32-year-old left-arm bowler from Hamilton completed the feat on Day 3 of the second India vs New Zealand in Pune Saturday. (More Cricket News)
Defending a 359-run target, the visitors dismissed India for 245 all soon after the Tea for a 113-run win in this pivotal series, which is also a part of the ICC World Test Championship 2023-25.
Tom Latham, leading in place of unavailable Kane Williamson, thus achieved the unthinkable -- beating India in India for a series win. They won the series opener in Bengaluru by eight wickets, for their first Test win in India in 36 years.
Mitchell Santner Magic
After taking 7/53 in India's first innings, eventual Player of the Match Santner triggered another Indian batting collapse at Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium.
And it started with the record of captain Rohit Sharma (8 off 16) in the 6th over, caught by Will Young. Santner then had Yashasvi Jaiswal (77 off 65), Shubman Gill (23 off 31), and Ravichandran Ashwin (18 off 34) caught by Daryl Mitchell, besides trapping Virat Kohli (17 off 40) in front.
In between, he completed the fifer with the wicket of Sarfaraz Khan (9 off 15), bowled, in the 36th over. A man for all occasions, Santner also affected a run out to dismiss a diving Rishabh Pant (0 off 3) with a brilliant flat throw from backward point.
Exclusive Club
Santner thus joined legendary Daniel Vettori in an exclusive two-man club -- Kiwi spinners with two fifers in a Test match. Vettori, also a left-arm spinner, had achieved the feat twice in an illustrious career -- 5/62 & 7/87 against Australia at Auckland and 6/70 & 6/100 against Bangladesh at Chattogram in 2000 and 2004, respectively.
For the record, the last spinner to complete two five-wicket hauls in a Test against India was Steve O'Keefe (6/35 & 6/35) when the visiting Australia beat India by 333 runs in the opener of a four-match series at the same venue in 2017.
12/70 was the best by a visiting spinner in India, and now the record belongs to Santner: 13/143. This, however, is the second-best match haul for a visiting spinner, just short of what Kiwi compatriot Ajaz Patel (14/225) had achieved in Mumbai in 2021.
What Next For India And New Zealand
India are chasing a third successive ICC World Test Championship (WTC) final appearance, and they started the series as favourites. But the defeat has not only ended their 18 consecutive Test series win but also jeopardized their top billing in the WTC standings.
The two teams will not head to Mumbai for the third and final Test match, to be played at Wankhede Stadium, starting November 1, 2024.
