Rachin Ravindra hammers his second Test fifty against Australia
New Zealand's batting sensation Rachin Ravindra has played yet another innings of character. He hammered a fine 82 off 153 balls in the third innings of the ongoing second and final Test against Australia in Christchurch (10 fours). His knock could not have come at a better time as NZ came into their second innings, trailing Australia by 94 runs.
A gritty effort from Ravindra
Ravindra arrived to bat in the final session of Day 2. He tackled the Aussie bowlers with precision and returned unbeaten on 11. The southpaw continued to bat well on Day 3 as he also opened up his arms after getting settled. He added 123 runs with Daryl Mitchell (58) as NZ went past 270. Ravindra eventually fell to Pat Cummins.
Maiden Test fifty for Ravindra
This was Ravindra's second Test fifty and his maiden one came in the opener of the ongoing series. His only other 50-plus score in the format was a record-breaking 240 against South Africa last month. Standing in his seventh Test, the southpaw has raced to 519 runs at 39.92. Meanwhile, he has completed 3,199 First-Class runs, averaging 40-plus (100s: 7, 50s: 14).
How has the match proceeded?
NZ were folded for 162 after being put on to bat as none of their batters could touch the 40-run mark. Josh Hazlewood starred with a five-wicket haul. Australia posted 256 in reply as Marnus Labuschagne made 90. Ravindra, Mitchell, and Tom Latham (73) helped NZ post 372 in their second outing. Australia have been set a target of 279 runs.
