Mumbai: Left-arm spinner Ajaz Patel (5/103) grabbed five wickets to help New Zealand dismiss India for 263 as the hosts took a slender 28-run first-innings lead in the third and final Test here Saturday.
Resuming at their overnight score of 86/4, Rishabh Pant (60) played a counter-attacking innings and raced to his fifty, while Shubman Gill (90) missed out on a hundred by 10 runs.
New Zealand were guilty of dropping a couple of catches but Ish Sodhi found the breakthrough for the tourists when he trapped Pant leg before in the 38th over.
Pant’s wicket slowed India’s momentum even as Gill continued to erase the deficit.
Patel, who picked two wickets on the opening day, added to his tally by claiming Gill, Sarfaraz Khan and R Ashwin.
Brief Scores:
New Zealand 1st inning 235 all out in 65.4.1 overs (Daryl Mitchell 82, Will Young 71; Ravindra Jadeja 5/65, Washington Sundar 4/81)
India 1st innings: 263 all out in 59.4 overs (Shubman Gill 90, Rishabh Pant 60; Ajaz Patel 5/103)