First Test: India, New Zealand play out an interesting draw
The first Test between India and New Zealand in Kanpur ended in a draw. India, who were defending 283, had the upper hand on the final day. Although R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja destroyed New Zealand's middle order, Rachin Ravindra and Ajaz Patel held their nerves to see NZ through. The duo remained unbeaten as New Zealand averted a loss. They finished on 165/9.
How did Day 5 pan out?
India had declared on 234/7 in the final session on Day 4. Chasing 284, New Zealand lost Will Young before stumps. The Kiwis started well on the final day, with Latham and William Somerville keeping them afloat. However, the likes of Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja struck at regular intervals. The final session saw a blockathon by Rachin Ravindra, with Kiwis ending with 165/9.
Ashwin breaks Harbhajan Singh's record
Ashwin broke Harbhajan's long-standing record of 417 Test wickets. The former is now India's leading wicket-taker in Test cricket among off-spinners. He is also the third-highest wicket-taker for India in the format after Kapil Dev (434) and Anil Kumble (619). He is expected to eclipse Dev too. Ashwin remains the second-fastest to 400 Test wickets, having reached the landmark in 77 Tests.
Shreyas Iyer attains these feats
Middle-order batter Shreyas Iyer smashed his maiden Test ton in the first innings. He followed it up with another 50+ score in the second. Iyer has become the first Indian to register a ton (first innings) and fifty (second innings) on Test debut. He is the 16th player overall to achieve this feat. Iyer smashed 105 and 65 in the two innings.
Tim Southee completes 50 wickets against India
By dismissing Mayank Agarwal in the second innings, New Zealand pace spearhead Tim Southee completed 50 wickets against India in Test cricket. He is only the second Kiwi bowler after Richard Hadlee to reach this landmark. Southee is the second-highest wicket-taker for New Zealand against India (Tests). He has 52 wickets from 10 Tests at an incredible average of 23.26.
Third-most runs for India in debut Test
Iyer registered the third-most runs for India in the debut Test (170: 105, 65). He is behind Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma on this tally. Dhawan amassed 187 against Australia in 2013, while Rohit smashed 177 against West Indies in the same year.
Fastest NZ bowler to 50 Test wickets
New Zealand fast bowler Kyle Jamieson raced to 50 Test wickets in the series opener. He is by far the fastest Kiwi bowler to have attained this feat. Jamieson has broken the record of former NZ pacer Shane Bond, who completed 50 Test wickets in 12 matches. The former now has 52 wickets in 9 Tests at an astonishing average of ~15.05.
Fifth five-wicket haul for Axar Patel
Axar ripped through New Zealand batting line-up in the first innings. He ended up taking a five-wicket haul, his fifth in Test cricket. Axar has now taken the joint-second-most five-wicket hauls in the first four Tests along with Tom Richardson and Rodney Hogg. Charlie Turner tops this list with six five-fors. Laxman Sivaramakrishnan and Narendra Hirwani have taken three each.
Joint-most five-wicket hauls in the year of debut
Axar now has the joint-most five-wicket hauls in the year of debut, with Rodney Hogg. The former now has 33 wickets at at incredible average of 11.12. The tally includes the best match figures of 11/70.
A look at the other notable numbers
Axar took four-plus wickets (5/62, 1st innings) in a Test innings for the sixth successive time. No other Indian bowler has done so in more than four consecutive innings. Jamieson took 1,865 balls to take 50 wickets, the third-most in Tests. Jadeja has four 50+ scores in his last six home Test innings. His scores read as - 0, 50, 12, 60*, 51, 91.
