Bengaluru, Sep 3: Day 4 of the Bengaluru Test was, as expected, an action-packed one. After bowling the Black Caps out for 248 in their second innings, India were chasing 261 to complete their first ever series sweep against the visitors. They started out with openers, Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir piling on 77 runs for the first wicket. However, thanks to three Jeetan Patel wickets, NZ were right back in the contest.
But Virat Kohli and MS Dhoni had other ideas, as the pair compiled a 96-run unbeaten sixth wicket partnership to take India over the line with a little over a day to spare in the Test match. In the process, Dhoni surpassed Mohammad Azharuddin’s record for winning most Test matches in India. Even Kohli continued his great form at home, by clocking yet another half-century on Indian soil. Here are all the milestones that were passed on Day 4 of this Test:
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Zaheer Khan’s wicket of Jeetan Patel was his 100th in Test matches on Indian soil. He became eighth bowler (and third pacer) to accomplish this feat after Anil Kumble (350), Harbhajan Singh (258), Kapil Dev (219), Bhagwat Chandrasekhar (142), Bishan Singh Bedi (137), Javagal Srinath (108) and Vinoo Mankad (!03).
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R Ashwin ended with 18 wickets from two Tests. Only two bowlers – Anil Kumble (v Pakistan in 1998-99) and Irfan Pathan (v Zimbabwe in 2005) with 21 wickets each – have taken more wickets in a two match series for India. Pathan also took 18 wickets vs Bangladesh in 2004-05.
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Sachin Tendulkar has now aggregated 1590 runs in the fourth innings of a Test – the most by any batsman. He went ahead of former teammate Rahul Dravid’s tally of 1575 runs. Dravid, however, has a better average (40.38) than Tendulkar (37.85).
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This match provided the first instance of Tendulkar getting out bowled in both innings of a home Test. Overall, it was the fourth such instance for Tendulkar. The other three came against the West Indies at Kingston in 2002, England at Nottingham in 2002 and Pakistan at Karachi in 2005-06.
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Sachin Tendulkar was dismissed bowled in three consecutive innings. The last time this happened was in England in 2002.
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Virat Kohli (51*) has now scored at least a fifty in all his five Test innings on Indian soil. His scores: 52 and 63 (v West Indies, Mumbai WS, Nov 2011), 58 (v New Zealand, Hyderabad); 103 and 51* in this Test.
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India registered the fourth highest successful chase on Indian soil, after 387/4 by India against England at Chennai in 2008-09, 276/5 by West Indies at Delhi in 1987-88 and 276/5 by India against the West Indies at Delhi in 2011-12.
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This win made MS Dhoni the most successful captain in home Tests. His tally of 14 Test wins puts him ahead of Mohammad Azharuddin, who won 13 Tests at home.
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The winning shot was a six by Dhoni off Jeetan Patel. He became fourth Indian to end a Test on winning note with a six, after Kapil Dev (v England, Lord’s 1986), Harbhajan Singh (v Zimbabwe, Delhi, 2001-02) and Suresh Raina (v Sri Lanka, Colombo PSS, 2010-11).
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For the first time, India beat New Zealand in all the Tests of a series. Overall, it was the eighth occasion of India sweeping a series of two Test matches or more.
