BENGALURU: Fifties from Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Sarfaraz Khan lifted India to fight back after Rachin Ravindra steered New Zealand to a massive 356-run lead on Day 3 of the rain-hit first Test here at M Chinnaswamy Stadium.
India got to 231/3 at Stumps, trailing New Zealand by 125 runs after Glenn Phillips dismissed Virat Kohli on the final delivery of the day.
The home side got off to a steady start as Yashasvi Jaiswal and skipper Rohit Sharma added 72 runs for the first wicket.
The opening stand lasted when Ajaz Patel got Jaiswal stumped on an anchoring 35, which featured six boundaries.
Rohit, known for his aggressive strokeplay, soon raced to his half-century in 59 balls but failed to convert it into a big knock as he too, fell victim to Patel.
He struck eight fours and a six on his way to a 63-ball 52.
India’s batting maestro Virat Kohli was then joined by young Sarfaraz Khan and the duo unleashed the demolition of New Zealand bowlers with a marathon stand, which yielded 136 runs.
However, Kohli had an agonizing end to his knock as he fell on the last delivery of an eventful third day of the rain-hit Test and had to settle for a well-crafted 70, laced up with eight fours and a six.
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Sarfaraz Khan, unbeaten on 70, will resume India’s second innings on the penultimate day with wicketkeeper batter Rishabh Pant.
For New Zealand, Ajaz Patel bagged two wickets while Phillps had one to his name.
Earlier in the day, New Zealand resumed their first innings at 180/3 with Rachin Ravindra and Daryl Mitchell, unbeaten on 22 and 14 respectively.
The duo, however, could add 13 runs to their overnight partnership as Mohammed Siraj got rid of Mitchell, who managed 18.
The visitors lost three more wickets in quick succession and had slipped to 233/7 but an astounding eighth-wicket partnership between Rachin Ravindra and Tim Southee set New Zealand to amass a massive total.
The pair frustrated Indian bowlers and added 147 runs for the eighth wicket until Siraj finally sent Southee packing after a defiant 65 with the help of five fours and four sixes.
Meanwhile, Rachin Ravindra was the last man to be dismissed as New Zealand were booked on 402.
Ravindra remained the top-scorer for the BlackCaps with a sensible 134, peppered with 13 fours and four sixes.
Ravindra Jadeja and Kuldeep Yadav bagged three wickets each, followed by Siraj with two, while Jasprit Bumrah and Ravichandran Ashwin shared two between them.
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