Mitchell Santner proved to be a thorn for the Indian batsmen as he once again struck telling blows and finished the match with a 13-wicket haul.
| Photo Credit: K. Bhagya Prakash

For the second time in three days – and the third time in four innings this series – India’s batters surrendered against a clinical New Zealand as the visiting side created history by taking an unassailable lead in the three-match series, mauling India by 113 runs.

Twenty-six minutes into the last hour of the third day at the Maharashtra Cricket Association stadium, with some of the 28,895 spectators who had turned up hoping against hope of an India turnaround, Tim Southee at long-on completed a clean catch to dismiss Ravindra Jadeja off Ajaz Patel and the New Zealand bunch burst into a prolonged bout of celebration.

After setting India a stiff target of 359, all it took for the Kiwi bowlers — led by the bespectacled Mitchell Santner — was 257 minutes and a little over 60 overs to wind up India’s second essay for 245.

Barring Yashasvi Jaiswal, who adopted an ultra-aggressive approach before being drawn forward and undone in flight by Santner, and Jadeja who prolonged the inevitable, no India batter could occupy the crease on a pitch that continued to aid the tweakers.

The Kiwi spinners – especially Santner – persisted with making India’s batters play by employing a stump-to-stump line. It paid dividend yet again as the Indian batters continued to be beaten on either side of the edge.

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Indian players celebrate after their win over Bangladesh in the first Test against Bangladesh in Chennai, on September 22, 2024.
| Photo Credit: R. Ragu

A dominant India tightened their grip on the top spot in the World Test Championship table with a 280-run victory over Bangladesh, while Sri Lanka saw off New Zealand in Galle to help their move towards a potential spot in the final at Lord’s next year.

The two results have led to shifts in the race for the two final spots, with Sri Lanka leapfrogging their current opponents into third spot.

India’s win in Chennai and the 12 WTC points reasserts their status at the top of the table, moving to a percentage of 71.67%, extending their lead on Australia in second (62.50%).

Bangladesh, who had jumped to the fourth position following an exceptional 2-0 win against Pakistan, drop to sixth place place (point percentage of 39.29%) behind Sri Lanka and England after the defeat.

Bangladesh started the fourth day at 158/4 in pursuit of India’s 515, with skipper Najmul Hossain Shanto and Shakib Al Hasan at the crease. The duo resisted briefly, though India’s spin duo of Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja wiped claimed the remaining six wickets for just 40 runs.

Ashwin won the Player of the Match award for his brilliant hundred in the first innings and six-for in the second innings.

Moving to third on the WTC25 table after victory in Galle, Sri Lanka stand the best chance of challenging the 2023 World Test Championship finalists for a spot in the 2025 final.

The 63-run victory over the Black Caps in Galle was their fourth in eight matches, moving them an even 50% of possible World Test Championship points, with a best possible percentage of 69.23% for Dhananjaya de Silva’s men.

That figure would likely be enough for a chance of lifting the mace in next year’s finale at Lord’s, though the side would need to beat New Zealand once more, claim a clean sweep of South Africa, and beat Australia 2-0 at home in a series early next year.

The Indians still have nine Tests remaining in this WTC cycle to decide their fate and make it to their third consecutive final of the tournament. They had ended as the runners-up in the previous two editions — to New Zealand (2021) and Australia (2023).