• Home
• /
• Cricket

NZ openers wipe off lead after Harbhajan show

New Zealand openers Brendon McCullum and Tim McIntosh wiped off India’s lead of 122 runs with their first century partnership of the series on the fourth day of the second test on Monday.

---

---

At tea, the visitors reached 131 runs for one wicket, taking a lead of nine runs, with McCullum (73) and Martin Guptill (4) at the crease.

An attacking McCullum and a watchful McIntosh (49) added 125 runs for the first wicket before the latter got an inside edge off his pads to be caught at short leg off Pragyan Ojha.

McCullum used his feet well against the Indian spinners and hit seven boundaries and three sixes during his unbeaten knock.

India’s attack was handicapped by the absence of paceman Zaheer Khan, who left the field midway through his fifth over, reportedly suffering an abdominal strain.

Earlier, spinner Harbhajan Singh shone with the bat once more as he hit his second consecutive ton to extend India’s first innings lead on the fourth morning at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium.

The Indian off-spinner continued tormenting the visitors with an unbeaten 111, following scores of 69 and 115 in the first test, and bludgeoned the New Zealand attack with seven fours and seven sixes to bring up his second test century.

Harbhajan added 105 runs for the final wicket with Shanthakumaran Sreesanth, who provided able support with 24 off 71 deliveries, before the hosts were dismissed for 472 in response to New Zealand’s 350.

New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori (5-135) trapped Sreesanth leg before to complete his 19^th five-wicket haul in a test innings.

The three-match series is tied at 0-0 after the opening test at Ahmedabad was drawn. The third and final test will be played in Nagpur from Nov. 20-24.