"He'll obviously be really upset" - Wasim Jaffer on Indian opener Mayank Agarwal's failure to convert his start in the second innings

Mayank Agarwal failed to spark for India in the first Test against New Zealand in Kanpur
Mayank Agarwal failed to spark for India in the first Test against New Zealand in Kanpur

Former Indian cricketer Wasim Jaffer has pointed out that Mayank Agarwal would be extremely upset following his failure to build upon a start in the second innings. After being outfoxed by Kyle Jamieson in the first innings, the Indian opener made another futile attempt to extend his stay at the crease.

Agarwal (17) did all the hard work and showed diligence in the first hour. However, Tim Southee set him up with in-swinging deliveries as he played with a closed bat-face. The Kiwi veteran then pitched on to a good length spot but got it to shape slightly away to Agarwal’s horror. The result was a regulation catch for Tom Latham at second slip.

Speaking about Agarwal's dismissal, Wasim Jaffer mentioned that the young opener would be really upset to get dismissed at slip on the fourth day on a Kanpur pitch. Jaffer told ESPNcricinfo:

"I think Mayank played out the first half an hour but he would be unhappy with that after playing for that long and he's got out to slips on the fourth day. So he'll obviously be really upset."

The 43-year old also commended the Kiwi pacers for their spirited performance in the morning session on Sunday.

"But like I said, you've got to give credit to Southee and Jamieson for how they bowled this morning. They got a couple of slips on Day 4 goes on to show how well they've bowled," Jaffer added.

The Kane Williamson-led Kiwis outplayed India in the first session. They strangled the hosts and left them reeling at 51/5. However, a crucial partnership between Shreyas Iyer and Ravichandran Ashwin helped India pull things back into their favor.


"It's been a little strange" - Wasim Jaffer on disparities between India and New Zealand's bowling units

Wasim Jaffer also had some surprising details to note while analyzing the Kanpur Test. While the Indian spinners were dominant against the Kiwis, it was the New Zealand pacers who kept the hosts' batters at bay.

14 out of 17 wickets that India lost in the ongoing Test were taken by the duo of Tim Southee and Kyle Jamieson. Conversely, Indian spinners took all but one scalp in the first innings in Kanpur.

While addressing this peculiar occurrence, Jaffer mentioned:

"It's been a little strange that out of seventeen wickets, 15 wickets have fallen to the fast bowlers of New Zealand. And when India bowled - they got 9 out of 10 wickets with the help of spinners."

India set a target of 284 runs for New Zealand in the fourth innings. Having already captured Will Young just before the end of the day's play, the hosts seem to be in pole position to clinch the game on Day 5.

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