Ajinkya Rahane batted through the first and second sessions even as regular wickets put India under pressure. (Twitter/BlackCaps)
India vs New Zealand (IND vs NZ) 1st Test Highlights: Ajinkya Rahane (38*) and Rishabh Pant (10*) took India to 122/5 at the Tea break on Day 1 of the 1st Test against New Zealand in Wellington on Friday before rain forced an early end to the day’s proceedings.
India suffered a batting collapse after being put into bat first. Prithvi Shaw and Mayank Agarwal opened the innings. Shaw (16) got off to an attacking start before he was bowled out with an outswinger by Tim Southee, bringing Cheteshwar Pujara out. Pujara (11) and Virat Kohli (2) were both dismissed in quick succession by debutant Kylie Jamieson (3/38). They reached Lunch at 79/3, with Rahane and Mayank Agarwal batting. After the resumption, Agarwal was caught at fine leg for 34. Hanuma Vihari was also soon gone for 7. Rishabh Pant joined Rahane after this and survived till the Tea break.
New Zealand Playing XI: Tom Latham, Tom Blundell, Kane Williamson(c), Ross Taylor, Henry Nicholls, BJ Watling(w), Colin de Grandhomme, Kyle Jamieson, Tim Southee, Ajaz Patel, Trent Boult
India Playing XI: Prithvi Shaw, Mayank Agarwal, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli(c), Ajinkya Rahane, Hanuma Vihari, Rishabh Pant(w), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah
Highlights
That is confirmation that there shall be no more play today. The third session has been washed out. Day 1 ends with 55 overs having been bowled. Ajinkya Rahane (38*) and Rishabh Pant (10*) will resume batting on Day 2 with India's score at 122/5.
Lots of action being seen on the ground as ground staff try to get the ground ready for play. However, if no more play is possible today, India will not mind it too much. Day 1 has not been too good for them. Tomorrow's weather forecast is a lot better. Rahane and Pant would much prefer to prepare for the scenario and resume batting on Day 2 itself.
Because of broadcasting reasons, this match had a late start. The match b egan at 11 30 am local time. Play was supposed to go on till 6 30 pm local time (11 am IST). However, with rain having come down, and there not exactly being the best of artificial light at this venue, there is almot no chance of play being extended beyond that time, ie 11 am IST. One option could be to have early starts on the next days if needed to make up for the lost time.
The star of the day so far has been debutant Kylie Jamieson. He got Kohli and Pujara in the morning session. He took Mayank Agarwal's catch at fine leg. He then came back in the second session to get Hanuma Vihari. Before Kyle Jamieson, the last bowler to dismiss 3 out of first 5 Indian batsman on Test debut was Josh Hazlewood in 2014 at Brisbane.
Inspection in 15 minutes.
Update: The umpires will inspect playing conditions and decide when the match can restart at 10 am IST.
The rain has stopped. But the covers are remaining on for the moment.
The skies in Wellington are dark and there is a steady torrent of rain. Does not look like we can have a resumption any time soon.
The rain delay is unfortunately continuing. And the rain is increasing for the moment. It is not holding up. Looks like this delay might not be as short as we were hoping.
There is a heavy drizzle that has come on. The groundsmen have covered the 22 yards. The skies have been overcast all day. It even rained early in the morning. And it has also been windy all through the day. Let's hope that helps the clouds pass quickly. Looks like there will now be a delay in starting the third session. Question is, how long will the delay be?
Rahane session-wise strike-rate on Day-1 in Wellington
Session 1- 19 runs in 34 balls; SR: 55.9
Session 2- 19 runs in 88 balls; SR: 21.6
Rahane has played completely riskless cricket as wickets have fallen around him. Conditions seemed to have eased a bit in the second session but two crucial wickets pegged India back and Rahane is still playing the waiting game as a result.
43 runs and 2 wickets. That was the sum of the 2nd session. New Zealand can be said to have been the victors of that session as well, after having icked up three wickets in the first session. Rahane and Pant have showed promise though. Pant has reined himself in even though he has shown flashes of impatience. Rahane, batting on 38, the highest score from this innings, has been in superb touch on the other hand. He has seldom put a foot wrong. New Zealand have bowled only 2 overs of spin in their 55 overs. Maybe Ajaz Patel will be bowled more in the last session of the day.
That is the end of the 2nd session. India go into the break at 122/5 after 55 overs. Rahane on 38. Pant on 10. This partnership worth 21 runs off 83 balls. A sign of how difficult the going has been for the visitors on this first day of the Test match. Two wickets fell in the session. Mayank Agarwal perished in the deep in going for a pull shot. Hanuma Vuhari was induced into playing a false shot and edging to the keeper. How close can India get to the 200 mark in the third session? Resumption in 20 minutes.
Patel has bowled two maiden overs. The batsmen not going after the spinner just yet. Will we see more of Patel after the Tea break? Trent Boult bowls the last over before Tea. Pant slashes at the second ball but the ball is stopped by a dive at gully. IND 122/5 after 54.3 overs
Rishabh Pant seems to have found a safer way of getting runs. Soft push down the leg side and runing hard to turn the single into a double. Pant looking a little more at home in the crease. Maybe Rahane has had a word with him after all. Or maybe he has decided playing counter attacking cricket is not the way to go at the moment. IND 121/5 after 53 overs
Trent Boult comes on to bowl the 51st over. Rishabh Pant swipes at a delivery. A little wildly. Is that a sign of frustration? He has been in the middle for a long time now. Has only 6 runs to show. And the next ball is wide. Pant goes wildly at it again. Troubling signs. Rahane might want to have a word with his partner. 6 off 31 balls is not the usual Pant innings, but he needs to bide his time further. And Ajaz Patel is finally brought on in the 52nd over. Spin will be seen for the first time in this match. IND 117/5 after 51 overs
Pant gets his first boundary after 36 minutes in the middle. Swivels and hits a short ball to the fine leg region. The ball beats the fielder and gets four valuable runs. Welcome runs for Pant. IND 116/5 after 50 overs
Grandhomme bowls another maiden over. Rishabh Pant plays out dot balls this time. A tentative air about his batting still. 2 off 24 balls so far, Pant. Pant has got a Test century in Australia already, so he is no stranger to overseas runs. Can he rise up to this situation though? IND 111/5 after 49 overs
Rahane is offering nothing to the bowlers. His partners have all looked shakier than him throughout the day today but Rahane has offered a solid front. He is playing exactly the sort of knock that India need. Southee and Grandhomme and continuing bowling at the moment. We are into the 49th over of seam bowling now. We are into the last half hour of the second session now. India are in no position to go after them right now though. IND 111/5 after 48 overs
New Zealand are chasing wickets but there are also other chases happening. It is so windy that Williamson is seen in chase of his cap from the 30 yard circle to the boundary rope. Looking flustered. This is one of the windiest cricket grounds in the world and it rained earlier in the morning today as well. IND 111/5 after 47 overs
Another maiden over by Grandhomme. Rahane remains on 34. This is the joint highest score - alongwith Mayank Agarwal - in this innings. Tim Southee replaces Jamieson. It was Southee's delivery to get Prithvi Shaw out that started the collapse. Can he put in another nail in by breaking this stand? IND 108/5 after 45 overs
Appeals of lbw against Pant. Difficult angle for the bowler to get the umpire to agree. Rishabh Pant has now played 9 balls without getting off the mark. New Zealand making batting tough for the young keeper batsman. Jamieson has now bowled a tireless 14 overs. 3/38 his figures on debut. Stuff of dreams for him.Not for India though. IND 108/5 after 44 overs
Rahane gets a four with a push down to long on. Grandhomme the bowler. He had conceded 5 runs off his 7 overs so far. But 5 runs come off the 43rd over to disturb his figures. That could give India some confidence. An over has gone their way after a long time. IND 106/5 after 43 overs
Rishabh Pant is being made to look uncomfortable by Jamieson's bounce. Huge appeals as short leg claims a catch. Replays show that had come off the batsman's pads.
With India at 101 for 5, this is a huge opportunity for Rishabh Pant to silence his critics. The criticism of his batting has been directed at his temperament. This could be his chance to shoe that he can play responsible cricket when required. The ever dependable Rahane is at the other end. Can he give his vice captain company long enough for India to get to a fighting total? IND 101/5 after 42 overs
Hanuma Vihari is gone for 7. Thick edge. First ball after drinks break. Debutant Jamieson the man again! Gets Vihari to play at a ball which he was in no position to play. Another edge. Another batsmen deceived by movement in the air. Another catch for wicketkeeper BJ Watling. Jamieson has now taken 3 wickets on his Test debut. Rishabh Pant comes in at No. 7. India sink deeper into crisis. IND 101/5 after 41.1 overs
Grandhomme is brought into the attack. The fourth seamer in this team. Still no spin. Ajaz Patel's spin bowling will be brought on sometime. This is the 41st consecutive over of seam bowling New Zealand have gone for though. A short extra cover is brought in. Agarwal's wicket has put even more pressure on the visitors but Rahane and Vihari are providing stiff resistance. IND 101/4 after 41 overs
Short ball gets Rahane in trouble. Jamieson the bowler who brings the error. Rahane took his eyes away. The ball struck his gloves and balooned up. That could have gone anywhere. Fortunately for Rahane, that flew above the keeper's head and for four. IND 100/4 after 40 overs
India are under pressure here, but Rahane and Vihari are exactly the men they would like to have in the middle. These two bailed India out in West Indies last year. Even in the tour match preceding this match, Vihari got a 100. Jamieson beats Vihari and gets the inner circle excited, meanwhile. INDIA 95/4 after 38 overs
Jamieson welcomes Vihari with a barrage of short balls. With a short leg in place. Vihari is feeling the pressure. There is an edge off the fifth ball. That lands short of the fielder at gully. New Zealand are breathing down India's necks at the moment.
Mayank Agarwal is gone. He is out for 34. He goes for the pull to Trent Boult. Jamieson, at fine leg, comes around to get under it. Mayank Agarwal did all the hardwork in the morning session to become the first Indian opener since Manoj Prabhakar to survive a morning session in New Zealand. And after all that, he throws it away early after the Lunch break. Trent Boult has his first wicket. That's a great moment for him. First wicket in international cricket this year for him. India 88/4 after 34.4 overs
Trent Boult is brought back on. And he has an impact straightaway. Almost! First ball of his new spell gets Mayank to offer a soft return catch. Boult does ever so well to get his hand to the ball but cannot hold on to it. What a start that could have been to the spell.
A pull from Rahane gets two runs. Excellently controlled shot from the vice captain again. Batting seems to have become a little easier than the first session. The batsman are biding their time before they can get into their groove a little bit. Jamieson has looked much less threatening in his second spell than he did in the morning.
The movement the New Zealand bowlers have got has not been venomous. But it has just been enough to keep the batsmen on the hooks. Southee and Jamieson also varying their lengths very well. Runs have not come since the resumption so far. Agarwal is beaten by Southee off the last ball of the 33rd over.
Rahane presents the full face of the bat to Southee. 2 runs off that over. Rahane is coming into the tour for the first time today. And he has looked good as long as he has been in the middle. He moves into his 20s. This partnership now worth 45 runs. Jamieson continues from the other end. Can he be more accurate with his line than his previous over?
Jamieson partners Southee with the ball after the break. Jamieson troubled the Indians the most in the first session. Mayank happy to see off his over without much attacking intent. But Jamieson bowls a short ball on the body off the fifth ball. Mayank plays a leg glance that runs for four. He moves into his 30s.
Back for resumption after the Lunch break. Rahane faces Southee. Again, three slips and a gully. The gully has been shifted a little finer than what it was in the first session. We saw a few boundaries come through that region off edges. New Zealand decide not to deploy an additional fielder there. They decide to shift the gully fielder a bit to his left. Rahane on 19. Mayank on 29. Which way will this session go? Southeee sgtarts off with a maiden after Lunch. IND 79/3 after 29 overs
Kohli, who fell for 2, was the cheapest wicket of the morning session. It was ater his wicket that Rahane and Agarwal put up a resistance. Kohli played too far away from his body to give Jamieson his second wicket in Test cricket.
The match will resume at 6:45 IST. Another half an hour for the players to catch their breaths. Rahane and Agarwal put up a resistance in the second hour of the morning session. India need a partnership. Vihari and Pant to come after this. Rahane and Agarwal have already added 39. How much more can they add?
Mayank Agarwal scripts a rare feat. The last Indian opener before him to survive the first session of a Test in New Zealand was Manoj Prabhakar in 1990. Meanwhile, Harsha Bhogle is disappointed Saha is not playing in the Test because Pant can bat a bit better.
Lunch break. India end the session at 79/3 in 28 overs. Rahane (19*) and Mayank Agarwal (29*) have ensured that India go into the pavilion after the first break with most of their batting left intact. Kylie Jamieson's double blow - getting Pujara and Kohli - on debut looked to have India on the mat in the middle point of the session. From then on though, Rahane and Agarwal added 39 runs in their partnership, ensuring India have a foot in the door.