IND vs NZ 2021: Very Surprised India Didn’t Take The New Ball: Shane Warne

Former Australian spinner Shane Warne questioned the Indian team’s tactics on the final day of the first Test.

India and New Zealand ended the engrossing Test match in a draw after the visitors remained firm in the final session to end at 165 for nine.

New Zealand tail-enders Rachin Ravindra and Ajaz Patel displayed a rock-solid defence in the final nine overs of the game to defy the Indian spinners.

India just needed one wicket to seal the game but the New Zealand spinners were great at blocking the balls to deny them a victory.

IND vs NZ 2021: Shane Warne explains the turning point of the match

Warne was stunned to see the Ajinkya Rahane-led side not opting to bowl with the new ball and felt the hosts missed the trick.

“Very surprised India didn’t take the new ball when it was available !!!! Strange they are still bowling with the old ball as light and overs are running out !!!!!! Thoughts?,” Warne tweeted.

“Will the 4 overs bowled with the old ball when the new ball was available be a turning point and allowed NZ to hang on or it won’t matter and India win???,” he added.

Shreyas Iyer, Ravichandran Ashwin reach milestones

Ravichandran Ashwin (3/35) and Ravindra Jadeja (4/40) bowled stupendously in the final session to pick the wickets of the Black Caps.

New Zealand opener Tom Latham was the highest run-scorer for the visitors, he stitched a 76-run stand with William Somerville, who came in as a night watchman on Day 4.

Shreyas Iyer, who scored 105 and 65 for India in his debut Test, was adjudged as the player of the match award.

Iyer became the first Indian player to score a hundred and a fifty in his debut Test, only legendary Indian batter Sunil Gavaskar scored two fifty-plus scores in his first Test.

Meanwhile, Ravichandran Ashwin (3/35 in the second innings) surpassed Harbhajan Singh’s tally of 417 Test wickets to become India’s third-highest wicket-taker in the oldest format.

Also Read: IND vs NZ 2021: We Knew We Had Time But Light Was Always Going To Come Into Play – Ravichandran Ashwin