Wellington: Brendon McCullum brought his country to
standstill when he steered one between slips and gully early on Tuesday,
in the process become the first man from his nation to score a Test
triple, even as debutant Jimmy Neesham collected a debut ton for himself
as India managed to draw the second Test at Basin Reserve.
Beginning the day at 281, McCullum went from 284 to 288, 289 to
293, and from 293 to 297 in boundaries. He was out soon after he reached
the personal milestone, but that mattered little to Neesham, who became
only the seventh man in history of Test cricket to score a debut ton at
number eight. The Kiwis finally declared at 680/8; their highest ever
Test total.
India responded with a typically shaky start, with openers
departing inside 6 overs and contributing just 10 runs between them.
After Cheteshwar Pujara fell for 17, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli
erected an unbeaten 112-run stand to finish the day- and Test- for India
at 166/3.
However, such was the impact of McCullum’s innings and New Zealand’s
exquisite rearguard action that a sublime second innings ton from Virat
Kohli went almost unnoticed. The 25-year old collected his sixth Test
ton in only his 24th Test, and finished undefeated on 105.
It turned out to be a disastrous tour for India as they remained
winless, losing the ODI series 0-4 and the Test series 0-1 following
their 40-run loss in the first Test at Auckland. India looked like
winning this Test match after reducing New Zealand to 94 for five in
their second innings but McCullum staged a remarkable fightback and
together with Watling shared a world record partnership of 352 runs for
the sixth wicket to take the hosts to safety. After Watling`s departure,
McCullum stitched another crucial 179-run stand with Neesham for the
seventh wicket to take the match beyond India`s reach.
McCullum’s 302 runs overtook Martin Crowe’s 299 scored against Sri
Lanka, also at the same ground, in 1991 to become highest individual
Test scorer for New Zealand. It was also the third-highest innings by a
number five batsman in Test cricket after Michael Clarke`s 329 not out
against India in 2012 and Sir Don Bradman`s 304 against England in 1934.
McCullum’s effort is also the second-highest individual score in
the second innings after Hanif Mohammad’s 337 against West Indies in
1958. Overall he is the 24th Test batsman to hit a triple-hundred, while
this is the 28th instance of a triple-hundred being scored. Chasing an
impossible 435-run target, India lost their top three batsmen in the
post-lunch session at the Basin Reserve. But Kohli stood tall and scored
105 unbeaten runs off just 135 balls with the help of 15 fours and one
six) to steady India`s ship after they were reduced to 54 for three.
Kohli reached his century in the 49th over of the innings off 129
balls. He made good use of the life he was given in the 13th over in the
post-lunch session at the personal score of 23, when umpire Steve Davis
had failed to judge an edge off Trent Boult.
The draw means India’s winless streak in away matches has extended
to almost three seasons now, starting from their whitewash in England
soon after the World Cup high.
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