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After taking seven wickets for 53 runs in the first inning, Santner has dismissed five Indian batters so far for 72 runs in the second.
Mitchell Santner becomes first New Zealand bowler to take two five-wicket hauls in a Test match against India. (Picture Credit: AP)
Star New Zealand spinner Mitchell Santner is on fire against India in the ongoing second Test at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Pune. The 32-year-old cricketer was added to the playing XI for the 2nd Test in place of Matt Henry, who picked up a five-wicket haul in the series opener played at M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. Santner justified his selection in the playing XI by dismissing seven Indian batters for 53 runs in 19.3 overs in the first inning, and he continued the red-hot form in the second inning as well by taking five wickets so far for 72 runs in 19 overs.
By taking five wickets in both innings of the second Test, Santner created history on Saturday (October 26) as he became the first Kiwi cricketer to dismiss five or more Indian batters twice in a Test match.
No other cricketer from New Zealand was able to achieve the feat before Santner, and only Ravichandran Ashwin from India has dismissed five batters twice in an India-New Zealand Test match.
If Santner manages to take three more wickets in the match, then he will register the best bowling figures in an India-New Zealand Test match. As of now, the record is in the name of Santner’s teammate Ajaz Patel, who picked up 14 wickets during the Mumbai Test played in December 2021.
Santner’s super show with the ball has put New Zealand on the cusp of winning back-to-back Test matches in India for the first time in history and also win the Test series. The Kiwis have never won a Test series in India before but now are on the cusp of ending their 69-year-long wait.
The series win over India will be a special one for the Black Caps, as they are playing the series in the absence of Kane Williamson, who is New Zealand’s leading run scorer in Tests. Williamson is part of New Zealand’s Test squad but is yet to arrive in India. In his absence, Rachin Ravindra and Devon Conway have stepped up for the Black Caps and scored big runs to put India on the backfoot.
