India vs Bangladesh (Photo Source: BCCI)
The fourth day of the second Test between India and Bangladesh at Kanpur was headlined by an audacious batting display from India in their bid for a result and some very crucial WTC points.
After the rain had washed out both Day 2 and Day 3 without any play, an extended day’s play finally got underway on Day 4 under clear skies at the Green Park stadium in Kanpur. Bangladesh resumed at 107/3 but did not survive very long. Mominul Haque (107* off 194) played a lone hand as wickets fell around him. India’s spirited bowling effort was led by Jasprit Bumrah (3 for 50) with contributions from Mohammed Siraj (2 for 57) and R Ashwin (2 for 45). Bangladesh were bundled out for 233 when Ravindra Jadeja dismissed the last man and completed 300 Test wickets. But nobody could predict what happened next.
Yashasvi Jaiswal hit three fours in the first over, but India’s intentions were made clear when Rohit Sharma (23 off 11) hit the first two balls he faced right out of Green Park. India brought up their fifty in just three overs and all the batsmen just had one thing on their mind. India brought up their 100 in a little over 10 overs with Jaiswal (72 off 51), who made a 31-ball 50, at the forefront. India kept breaking records with the bat as Shubman Gill (39 off 36), KL Rahul (68 off 43) and Virat Kohli (47 off 35) kept the innings in top gear. India’s other batters including Akash Deep (12 off 5) went out swinging, and India declared at 285/9 with a lead of 52. Bangladesh were 26/2 from 11 overs at stumps with Ravichandran Ashwin (2 for 14) striking both times.
Here are the important numbers from the day:
2 – Mominul Haque became the second Bangladesh player to hit a Test hundred in India after Mushfiqur Rahim at Hyderabad in 2017.
4 – By the number of matches taken, Ravindra Jadeja with 74 became the fourth fastest Indian to 300 Test wickets. R Ashwin is the fastest with 54 and is followed by Anil Kumble (66) and Harbhajan Singh (72).
7 – Ravindra Jadeja is the 7th Indian bowler to take 300 Test wickets.
3 – Ravindra Jadeja is the 3rd left-arm spinner to take 300 Test wickets. Daniel Vettori (362) and Rangana Herath (433) are ahead of him.
11,3 – Ravindra Jadeja became the 11th player and the 3rd Indian to complete the coveted double of 3000 runs and 300 wickets in Test cricket. R Ashwin and Kapil Dev got there before him among the Indians.
2 – Ravindra Jadeja completed the aforementioned double in 74 matches, becoming the second fastest to the milestone. Ian Botham took 72 matches to complete the double.
5 – Rohit Sharma became the 5th Indian player after MS Dhoni, Zaheer Khan, Sachin Tendulkar, and Umesh Yadav to hit a six off the first ball he faced in a Test innings.
4 – Rohit Sharma became the 4th player in Test history to hit sixes off each of the first two balls he faced in a Test innings. The other three are Foffie Williams, Sachin Tendulkar, and Umesh Yadav.
1 – India reached their 50 in 3.0 overs, 100 in 10.1 overs, 150 in 18.2 overs, 200 in 24.2 overs and 250 in 30.1 overs. All 5 of these are the respective records for reaching those scores in a Test innings.
3 – Yashasvi Jaiswal reached his fifty off 31 balls, which is the joint-third fastest for India. Rishabt Pant made a 28-ball fifty against Sri Lanka in 2022, Kapil Dev off 30 balls against Pakistan in 1992 and Shardul Thakur took 31 against England in 2021. Jaiswal’s fifty is also the fastest ever against Bangladesh.
4 – Virat Kohli became the fourth player to amass 27000 runs in international cricket. In taking only 594 innings, he became the fastest to the milestone. Kohli is now the fastest to every single milestone from 15000 to 27000 runs in international cricket.
1 – India’s run rate of 8.22 in their innings is the highest in a Test innings of a minimum of 200 runs. The previous highest was 7.53 when Australia put up 241/2 in 32 overs against Pakistan in 2017.
1 – India took their tally of sixes in Test for the year to 96 which is the most by a team in a single calendar year. The previous highest was 89 by England in 2022.
1 – 285/9 is the lowest total at which India has declared their first innings in a Test. The previous lowest was 291/9 against Australia in 1949.