Rohit Sharma failed to fire and gave New Zealand the only reason to cheer on the second day when Kaustubh Pawar and Suryakumar Yadav scored contrasting centuries during the three-day warm-up match here on Saturday.
Rohit, expected to tune up for the upcoming three-Test series, was stumped off Ish Sodhi. During this 40-ball innings of 18, Rohit did hit a six and a four but perished in his attempt to hoist the leg-spinner for another big one. Barring Rohit, all the Mumbai batsmen on view on this day scored at least a half century.
READ: >Bracewell: 'Mumbai put us under pressure'
For the record, Mumbai resumed the second day at 29 for one and reached 431 for four at stumps. Having scored 402 runs in 90 overs on this day, Mumbai leads by 107 runs.
On a pitch that encouraged the three mainline spinners – Sodhi, off-spinner Mark Craig and left-arm spinner Mitchell Santner – Pawar and Yadav took turns to score big as the innings saw three century partnerships, 18 sixes and 48 boundaries.
After youngster Armaan Jaffer resumed at overnight 24 and reached 69 dotted with a six and nine boundaries, Pawar stayed firmly on course for a well-deserved century. He covered the distance with 15 boundaries, picking Mark Craig and later Sodhi for special treatment. He scored a boundary off Doug Bracewell to reach 100 and retired.
In fact, Sodhi was punished more severely by Yadav who smashed eight sixes and nine boundaries during his 86-ball blitzkrieg. Yadav made his intentions clear by finding his first four boundaries and two sixes off Sodhi. Later, part-timer Martin Guptill allowed Yadav to add three more sixes to his tally.
Attack continues
In the final session, after New Zealand bowlers were well and truly taken to the cleaners by Yadav, Siddhesh Lad and skipper Aditya Tare raised 137 for the unfinished fifth-wicket stand.
Lad, who missed out on big scores in the recent Duleep Trophy, came good against a uninspired attack. With spinners in operation, Lad hit left-arm Mitchell Santner for four sixes, including two in an over. He went on to add two more off Sodhi before hitting the leg-spinner for three boundaries in one over!
Tare, who reached his half-century just before stumps, hit seven boundaries despite playing second fiddle to Lad. Now it is up to Tare to apply closure to the Mumbai innings on Sunday morning and test the New Zealand batsmen.
The scores:
New Zealand -1st innings: 324 for seven decl.
Mumbai -1st innings: Jay Bista c Watling b Boult 0, Kaustubh Pawar (retired out) 100, Armaan Jaffer c Ronchi b Sodhi 69, Rohit Sharma st. Watling b Sodhi 18, Suryakumar Yadav c Ronchi b Santner 103, Aditya Tare (batting) 53, Siddhesh Lad (batting) 86, Extras (lb-2) 2, Total (for four wickets in 103 overs) 431
Fall of wickets: 1-0, 2-107, 3-133, 4-288.
New Zealand bowling : Trent Boult 12-4-35-1, Neil Wagner 14-4-39-0, Mitchell Santner 20-5-71-1, Doug Bracewell 10-2-38-0, Mark Craig 18-3-60-0, Ish Sodhi 20-3-132-2, Martin Guptill 5-0-42-0, Kane Williamson 4-0-12-0.
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