Virat Kohli’s poor form continued when he was dismissed for another low score during the second innings of the second Test between India and New Zealand in Pune. Kohli was dismissed for 17 by left-arm bowler Mitchell Santner.
Santner received a long ball that went quickly out of bounds and Kohli was hit in front of the stumps. On-field umpire Richard Illingworth quickly raised his finger as Kohli called for review. The ball was found to hit the outside of the leg stump and Kohli was declared out.
India’s star batsman was shocked and looked in complete disbelief. He even angered the referee for not giving the decision in his favor. After waiting for a few seconds, Kohli finally decided to leave.
Watch: Virat Kohli-Yashasvi Jaiswal involved in horrible mix-up; Gautam Gambhir reacts
Watch: Virat Kohli in complete disbelief after coming out; smoke on the referee
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The crowd was stunned into absolute silence when Kohli returned to the dressing room. It was a huge moment in the game and possibly the fatal blow to India’s chances of turning the tide in Pune. As Kohli returned in disbelief, the New Zealand players celebrated knowing the value of their wicket.
Virat Kohli’s form a cause for concern
Virat Kohli looked in good form in this innings and was all set to score big. However, his innings were again short-lived for Mitchell Santner, who is having a great game. Santner dismissed Kohli for the second time in the match.
Virat Kohli’s dismissal meant another low score for the Indian legend. He is currently going through a rough patch with a series of low scores. Their poor form is clearly reflected in India’s performance as well.
India will play a five-match Test series in Australia after the Tests against New Zealand. The Men in Blue will be hoping that Kohli returns to fitness and quickly returns to the track ahead of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
New Zealand on the brink of historic Test series victory
Meanwhile, New Zealand have shown tremendous composure to put India on the verge of a rare defeat in the Test series in Pune. After winning the first Test with seamers, the visitors settled in well to catch India off guard with some good bowling.
Mitchell Santner led the way for the Kiwis in this game with figures of 7-53 in the first innings. The experienced left-arm bowler already picked up a five-wicket haul in the second innings and looks set to add more to his tally.
The Indian batsmen’s recent vulnerability to high-quality spin bowling was captured here by the New Zealand spinners. Apart from Yashasvi Jaiswal’s second innings score of 77, there was no other significant score for them.
India are 178-7 at Tea on Day 3 with Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin at the crease. New Zealand already leads the series 1-0 after winning the first Test in Bengaluru. They are now in line to create history with their first Test series win in India.