Jadeja, Ashwin secure 56-run lead

Innings New Zealand 262 (Williamson 75, Latham 58, Jadeja 5-73, Ashwin 4-93) trail India 318 by 56 runsLive scorecard and ball-by-ball details

Ravindra Jadeja ran through New Zealand’s lower order, picking up his fifth five-wicket haul in Test matches, to secure a 56-run first-innings lead for India. Starting the post-lunch session 238 for 5, New Zealand were bowled out for 262, losing their last five wickets in the space of 29 balls, including three in one Jadeja over.

R Ashwin, who finished with four wickets, began the post-lunch collapse, with his first ball of a new spell. Bowling from over the wicket, he brought Mitchell Santner on to the front foot with a well-flighted offbreak that turned just enough to take a thin edge through to Wriddhiman Saha. Santner, out for 32 off 107 balls, had defended resolutely till that point, and featured in partnerships of 49 with Luke Ronchi and 36 with BJ Watling.

Three overs later, New Zealand felt the full force of Jadeja. He had Mark Craig and Ish Sodhi lbw off successive balls, both caught shuffling across the crease rather than going forward or back, though the ball that dismissed Sodhi may have been sliding down leg. Trent Boult survived two balls, and then, defending his third onto his boot, was caught brilliantly by Rohit Sharma diving forward from silly point.

The innings ended in the very next over, Watling looking to drive a teasingly flighted Ashwin offbreak down the ground and ending up offering a return catch.

In the end, the two teams’ first innings mirrored each other. India had gone from 154 for 1 to 318 all out. New Zealand had lost their second wicket with their score 159. That India ended up with as much of a lead as they did may have been down to lower-order contributions. India lost their last five wickets …

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