Ajaz Patel warns India about Mumbai pitch: batting will be tough on day three

New Zealand spinner Ajaz Patel has warned India that the game will become much tougher on the third day of the final Test match in Mumbai. New Zealand finished the second day of the Test match on 171/9, leading the match by 143 runs. The team lost 8 wickets to Indian spinners – Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar as the ball turned flat.

Speaking at a press conference on Saturday, November 2, Patel said the ball was spinning on both sides of the pitch. The spinner took 5/103 in India’s first innings and said the outcome of the third day’s match would depend on whether the pitch continues to crumble.

“Whatever we score, we will have to try and do our best to restrict India, but it will be interesting to see how the wicket continues to play,” Patel said when asked if New Zealand have enough players.

“It turns quite sharply, inconsistently in terms of how much it turns and bounces, but as a spinner it’s also reassuring that you’re going to get something out of the surface and it’s quite difficult to hit the ball,” he said.

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Not only the New Zealanders but also the Indian batting players found the Mumbai pitch difficult. However, Rishabh Pant and Shubman Gill played stunning knocks to keep India ahead in terms of runs in the first innings. The player was further asked about the nature of the Mumbai pitch and he said that the Mumbai track offers variable bounce.

“It certainly turns at both ends, it’s just the bounce that varies a little bit, so from a batting point of view that could be an issue as well,” the spinner said.

Patel praised Rishabh Pant, whose counter-attacking 60 erased New Zealand’s lead at one stage.

“I thought I was playing very well but Rishabh played exceptionally, he was phenomenal throughout the tour and he is the kind of player who puts us under pressure no matter the situation.

“As long as you’re putting the ball in good places, you’ve got a good plan and a good set-piece, then it’s about him picking the option and he’s very, very good and picking the right options,” he said.

New Zealand will be looking to extend their lead beyond 150 runs on day three. The highest ever score in Mumbai is the 163 runs that South Africa managed to achieve against Sachin Tendulkar’s India in 2000.

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