Kanpur: Ravindra Jadeja got to his 17th Test half-century after debutant Shreyas Iyer hit his maiden Test fifty as India reached 258/4 at stumps on Day 1 of the first Test against New Zealand in Kanpur. Iyer and Jadeja put an unbroken 113-run fifth-wicket stand after stand-in captain Ajinkya Rahane became Kyle Jamieson’s third victim. Iyer was unbeaten on 75 while Jadeja was batting on 50. The duo did a fine rebuilding job after New Zealand had reduced India to 145/4. Promising knock come to a halt as Kyle Jamieson (15.2-6-47-3) and Tim Southee (16.4-3-43-1) rocked the middle-order in inspiring post-lunch spells.
India did not lose a single wicket in the final session. Opener Shubman Gill was dismissed in the first over of the post-lunch session on Day 1 of the first Test in Kanpur followed by Cheteshwar Pujara. India’s No. 3 was dismissed by Tim Southee. He failed to convert a good start to a big score yet again. Pujara hasn’t reached the three figure-marks since 2019 and the wait is still on. Earlier, Gill dominated New Zealand bowlers with his 52-run knock and added 61 runs with Pujara for the second wicket. Mayank Agarwal was the first to go for 13 in the morning session after Rahane won the toss and opted to bat first. India handed a debut to Shreyas Iyer.