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India vs Afghanistan, One-off Test in Bengaluru, Day 1, Highlights: As It Happened

Cricketnext Staff | Updated: June 14, 2018, 6:26 PM IST

One-off Test, M.Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru 14 - 18 June, 2018

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Highlights

18:10(IST)
18:08(IST)

Stumps, Day 1:  That's it folks, India have finished the day at 347/6 at stumps on day 1 of this historic India vs Afghanistan Test. Late wickets have ensured that the visitors are right back in the match after  a stunning start from centurions Shikhar Dhawan and Murali Vijay. KL Rahul also chipped in with a fifty but Ajinkya Rahane, Cheteshwar Pujara and Dinesh Karthik failed with the bat to help the visitors get back into the match. 

17:59(IST)

Four: Wafadar bowls a bit wide and Ashwin was waiting for it as he drives the ball through the covers for a boundary. That will relieve some of the pressure that had been building on the Indian batsmen in the last few overs. 

17:51(IST)

OUT: Another one bites the dust as Dinesh Karthik becomes the six Indian batsman to fall. Pressure gets the better of Karthik as he goes for a suicidal run and ends up being run out for 4. Ashwin now joins Pandya in the middle. 

17:44(IST)

Karthik and Pandya are playing cautious cricket at the moment as Afghanistan spinners are troubling them with their variation. Both Rashid and Mujeeb have hit back strongly in the match after going for runs earlier in the day. Both have picked up their respective maiden Test wickets in the last few overs and are troubling the two batsmen now. 

17:37(IST)

India now have two new batsmen at the crease and Karthik and Pandya will look to hold the fort for the remaining of day's play. After a glorious start to the match, Indian batsmen have given away their wickets in this last session of the day. 

17:31(IST)

OUT: Afghanistan bowlers are slowly and steadily coming back into the match as Cheteshwar Pujara becomes the fifth Indian wicket to fall. Pujara flicks a Mujeeb delivery straight into the hands of Nabi at leg slip, who picks his maiden Test wicket. 

17:24(IST)

Dropped: Rashid Khan almost had his second wicket of the day but Nabi drops a catch at first slip and Pujara survives. The ball turns and bounces and Pujara was caught off guard, it takes a thick edge of the bat and Nabi puts down the sitter at slip. Rashid is now a happy man and his expressions say it all. 

17:17(IST)

OUT: The visitors have finally managed to scalp the prized wicket of India skipper Ajinkya Rahane, who never looked settled in the middle throughout the course of his innings. Rashid's delivery had hit Rahane on the pads but the umpire said not out, thinking about the height. However, DRS showed that the ball was crashing into the stumps and Rahane has to depart for 10. Rashid gets his maiden Test wicket. 

17:11(IST)

Four: Shocker of a delivery from Mujeeb as the spinner bowls short and wide down the leg side and Rahane simply swats the ball away for a boundary towards the square leg region. The spinners have bowled rather wayward the whole day for Afghanistan's liking. 

17:07(IST)

Four: Finally a boundary for the Indian team after a few low-scoring overs as both Rahane and Pujara are building a good partnership here. Carrom ball from Mujeeb and Rahane rocks onto the back-foot and punches the ball through the covers for a boundary.

16:59(IST)

Yet another maiden here, this time from Ahmadzai. India moving at snail's pace now and are 304/3 after 62 overs

16:51(IST)

Rashid Khan also bowls a maiden now, his first one of the innings, coming in the 18th over. Its also time for drinks now, India are 304/3 after 61 overs here.

16:47(IST)

300 is up for India here, Stanikzai bowling short and outside the off stump. That's just net practice for Pujara, who hits it between first slip and gully for a four. India are 300/3

16:42(IST)

Rahane survives here, it was a short ball from Ahmadzai and Rahane looks to pull the ball but it seems to have taken a nick off the glover here, umpire raises his finger but Rahane straight away asks for a review. Replays show that it had brushed Rahane's shoulder. He survives.

16:37(IST)

Captain Asghar Stanikzai comes into the attack, bowling at innocuous pace here, not going over 120 kph. Concedes just 2 runs in that over and India are 290/3 here

16:31(IST)

Yet another maiden from Wafadar here, it seems Pujara and Rahane are playing for the stumps now. Not willing to take any risks at. India are 288/3 here

16:25(IST)

FOUR! Would have been yet another maiden over but Rahane latches onto a short ball and cuts it hard past point for a boundary. Fine looking shot to get off the mark here. India are 288/3

16:20(IST)

Wafadar follows that up with yet another maiden, Afghanistan starting to bowl consistently well here and piling on the pressure here. Pujara and Rahane will have to use all their experience here

16:16(IST)

Maiden wicket over for Ahmadzai here, Ajinkya Rahane has joined Cheteshwar Pujara in the middle here and both will have to rebuilt here.

16:12(IST)

WICKET! Ahmadzai strikes now, disastrous shot though from Rahul. Looks to cut it with minimum feet movement, the ball comes back in and takes an inside edge before the off stump is rattled. Rahul departs for 54 and India are 284/3 now.

16:08(IST)

WICKET! Murali Vijay departs, Wafadar strikes. Vijay looks to leave the ball but it comes back in sharply, hitting him on the pads. Umpire raises his finger but Vijay reviews, more out of hope than anything else. It's umpires call and Vijay has to walk back. He departs for 105. India are 280/2

16:00(IST)

50! KL Rahul completes his half-century now, yet another short ball from Rashid and Rahul just places it towards fine leg for a boundary. Rahul completes his 50 off just 61 balls. India are 276/1.

15:59(IST)

100 yet again, this time for Rashid Khan though. He concedes 100 runs here, tough induction into the longest format. He has really struggled with his line and length, bowling too short and paying the price.

15:53(IST)

100! Murali Vijay completes his 12th Test ton here. Lifts one over the inner circle and the ball goes to the boundary. Been a fine innings from the Indian opener, he lacked match practice coming into the game and struggled early on, but once he settled in, there has been no looking back. The 100 partnership is also up with Rahul and they celebrate with a dab. India are 268/1

15:52(IST)

Rashid starts proceedings after rain stoppage here. Starts with a couple of dot balls.

15:35(IST)

Dileep Premachandran in Bangalore:
Rain has stopped. Sopper out again. The covers still very wet, but the sky overhead is bright blue. The lights are on in any case. This outfield dries extremely quickly, so we could be back on by 4pm or so.
 

15:07(IST)

Rain is back here! The weather had cleared just for a while but the rain is back with a vengence.  This time it looks like a heavy shower. Ground staff has quickly covered the ground here. Murali Vijay on 99, India are 263/1 here.

15:03(IST)

Clouds outside Chinnaswamy Stadium. (Photo Courtesy: DP Satish)

14:59(IST)

Rashid Khan continues to struggle here, he is bowling too short here for Test match. He is getting the odd ball to spin here but not really troubling the batsmen. India move onto 259/1 after 47 overs here

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India vs Afghanistan, One-off Test in Bengaluru, Day 1, Highlights: As It Happened

Preview: Just under 15 months ago, with Virat Kohli nursing an injured shoulder, it was Ajinkya Rahane that led India to a series victory over Australia in Dharamsala. One of the catalysts for that success was a debutant. Kuldeep Yadav’s contentious selection may or may not have contributed to Anil Kumble losing the coaching job, but there’s every chance that the Rahane-Kuldeep combination will once again be seen at the Chinnaswamy Stadium on Thursday for a Test that marks Afghanistan’s entry into the big league. The live telecast of India's one-off Test match against Afghanistan will start at 9am on June 14th (Thursday) in Bengaluru. The match can be watched live on the Star Sports network and live streamed on Hotstar.com. You can also follow the match live commentary for ball-by-ball updates, full score on cricketnext.com.

Rahane himself has had a tumultuous year. Dropped for the first two Tests against South Africa in January after a dismal home series against Sri Lanka, he was recalled only for The Wanderers, by which time the series was already lost. The 48 he made on that spiteful pitch may have shut the door on Rohit Sharma’s Test career for the foreseeable future, and Kohli’s recent birthday wish on social media suggested that India wouldn’t make the mistake of jettisoning Rahane for an overseas Test again any time soon. With injury once again sidelining Kohli, it will be fascinating to see how Rahane approaches this assignment. Like Cheteshwar Pujara, who had a shocking county season – 100 runs in eight innings for Yorkshire – he is now a one-format player. After this game, while most jet off for the limited-overs leg in the UK, Rahane will be left to his own devices to prepare for the five-Test series that starts on August 1. For the moment, the focus is very much on Bengaluru, and a landmark occasion. “It’s an honour for all of us to be part of this Test match,” said Rahane. “A big moment for Afghan cricket as well. Playing a Test match is always special. It’s an honour for me as well to be captain in this match.” Asghar Stanikzai, who will head out for the toss of the coin with him, had stirred the pot a few days ago by suggesting that his team had the more accomplished spinners. But Rahane had no interest in getting into a public debate on the matter. “Every member of a team, they always believe their team is good, that their bowling attack and their batting is better,” he said, the very acme of diplomacy. “We all know the stats, but we don’t focus on stats. In Test cricket, every session matters a lot. It is important that you do your best all the time. Our spinners – Kuldeep, Ashwin or Jadeja – they are all experienced. They are quality spinners, they back each other, they enjoy bowling with each other even in the nets and in the match. On that given day, it’s important what is your mindset and how to handle pressure.” Phil Simmons, the Afghanistan coach, certainly didn’t try to contradict his captain. If anything, he only reinforced the message.

“My captain knows what he is talking about,” he said with a laugh. “When you look at it, all spinners in this contest will be excellent. We know that right now, Rashid [Khan] is the most difficult spinner to play. He has not played Test cricket. We have to look and see what happens. but his professionalism will help him to adjust and am sure he will come out well.” Stanikzai said he wouldn’t know what ‘nervous’ meant and stressed on the structures that Afghanistan have put in place to produce far more talent than most emerging nations. “We have different tournaments, four-day first-class tournaments, University T20 tournaments,” he said. “So, there are players you can't hide when they do well in domestic cricket. Most of our matches are live on social media so they are coming through. We have limited players from different provinces but when they perform we give them a chance in our teams like A team and development squad. They are coming through to the national team.” Mohammad Shahzad returns to the fray after missing some of the Intercontinental Cup campaign because of a drug-related ban, but Afzar Zazai is set to keep his place behind the stumps. Shahzad, whose admiration for Dhoni is second to none, will play as a specialist batsman and field close in. Afghanistan are likely to play three specialist spinners, and Mohammad Nabi, with the exciting 18-year-old Wafadar taking the new ball.

India have a couple of selection conundrums to sort out before they step on to the park. The pitch, which has been prepared under cloudy skies and with plenty of rain in the air, has a fair smattering of grass, but also comes with a reputation for assisting the slow bowlers. Ashwin and Jadeja both played crucial roles in India’s stunning come-from-behind victory against Australia here in March 2017, and the temptation will be overwhelming to add Kuldeep’s wristy, left-arm variations to the mix. If that happens, Karun Nair, who had been expected to make a Test comeback, could be the one to miss out. There’s also the question of which two to pick from Murali Vijay, KL Rahul and Shikhar Dhawan. Dhawan was dropped in South Africa, where the conditions didn’t suit his brand of swash and buckle, but Rahul didn’t make runs either. Vijay too was disappointing. Rahul was in prime form in the IPL, and it wouldn’t be a surprise if India took a punt on him, just as England recently did with Jos Buttler. With Mohammed Shami again sidelined, the pace bowlers pick themselves. Umesh Yadav was hugely impressive in that 2017 series against Australia, while Ishant Sharma has had a fine stint with Sussex in the county championship.
For Navdeep Saini, this Test has probably come too soon, but we’ll be seeing and hearing a lot more of him. “Over the last three days, the focus has been on tuning our minds, especially because we’re coming in after two months of the IPL,” said Rahane. “Skill-wise, it won’t make a difference, but our attitude [towards training] matters, if you have to make a quick switch in terms of our mindset from T20s to Test cricket. Talking about Afghanistan, we won’t take them lightly. From our side, we will play like how we approach any other team. Our attitude will remain the same on the field.” “It is itself history that we are playing the inaugural and historic Test match against the number-one team in the world,” said Stanikzai, reflecting on what lies ahead.

“The mood back home is that they are very positive and supportive and looking forward for the best performance. They expect us to perform well because recently Afghanistan performed really well in the T20s and ODIs. Their expectation will be the same from us.” Along with the anticipation, there will also be a twinge of regret, mixed with some relief. “I think there will always be a bit of disappointment in the players not to be on the same field as Virat,” said Simmons. “But at the same time, we look at it as win the Test match and beat India. We don't beat Virat. We are disappointed he is not playing, but a little bit happy that we are not going to bowl to him all the time. We are happy to be here and playing India. Virat is not India.”
India (likely XI): Murali Vijay, KL Rahul, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane (capt), Dinesh Karthik (wk), Hardik Pandya, R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Umesh Yadav, Ishant Sharma.
Afghanistan (likely XI): Javed Ahmadi, Mohammad Shahzad, Rahmat Shah, Asghar Stanikzai (capt), Mohammad Nabi, Afzar Zazai (wk), Rashid Khan, Yamin Ahmadzai, Zahir Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Wafadar.

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