India crush Afghanistan by an innings and 300 runs in one-off Test

NEW CHANDIGARH: Spinners Washington Sundar and Kuldeep Yadav took seven wickets between them as India hammered Afghanistan by an innings and 300 runs inside three days in their one-off Test on Monday.

India bowled Afghanistan out for 112 in their second innings after debutant spinner Manav Suthar took 6-33 to force the visitors to bat again.

After forcing the visitors to follow on, Indian spinner Washington Sundar took his third wicket to dismiss Sediqullah Atal for 42 at the stroke of tea on day three in New Chandigarh, leaving Afghanistan reeling at 98-5.

After the break, Indian spinners quickly wrapped up Afghanistan’s innings to clinch the thumping victory.

Afghanistan trail by 314 runs in a one-sided match, and a big India win is now just a matter of time in front of a sparse crowd at India’s newest Test venue.

The Afghan openers started steadily before fast bowler Mohammed Siraj sent back Abdul Malik for eight.

Left-arm wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav then broke through Rahmanullah Gurbaz’s resistance on 24 and Sundar dismissed Rahmat Shah for 13.

Sundar struck again to remove skipper Hashmatullah Shahidi for five.

In the morning session, Afghanistan were bowled out for 152 in response to India’s first-innings 564-8 declared with Suthar returning figures of 6-33.

Afghanistan put up a semblance of fight through Rahmat’s 60 before their first innings folded in 58.4 overs.

Fast bowler Prasidh Krishna struck first in the morning as he bowled Azmatullah Omarzai for a duck after the batsman inside-edged the ball on to his stumps.

Rahmat then put on a stubborn stand of 24 with Sharafuddin Ashraf, who made 11, to frustrate the Indian bowlers in the first hour of play.

Rahmat raised his sixth Test half-century with a four.

Suthar, 23, a left-arm spinner who impressed on Sunday with three wickets, broke the stand after he had Ashraf trapped lbw.

Suthar then bowled Rahmat for his five-wicket haul, and three balls later he trapped Mohammad Saleem lbw for a duck.

He is only the fifth Indian and first since veteran spinner Ravichandran Ashwin in 2011 to take a six-wicket haul on Test debut.

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