MULLANPUR, June 7:
Debutant Manav Suthar’s classical left-arm spin bowling was a beacon of hope for a bright future as his three wickets gave India complete control on the second day of their one-off Test against Afghanistan here on Sunday.
With mercury soaring, India declared their first innings at 564 for 8 once Washington Sundar scored a pressure-free half-century while adding 54 useful runs with Suthar (28 off 41 balls).
At stumps, Afghanistan were tottering at 113 for 5 with Suthar recording figures of 3 for 21 in 15.5 overs.
Prasidh Krishna (2/27 in 7 overs) was the other wicket-taker. Hosts, now, are ahead by 451 runs. Having warmed up nicely with a short yet sweet maiden Test knock, Suthar got into the act straightway after being summoned to bowl the last over before tea.
He removed opener Abdul Malik, who wanted to sweep his way out of trouble after looking clueless facing first three deliveries.
A classical action and the old school diagonal run-up of bowling to right-handers while cutting between the umpire and stumps, the 23-year-old from Rajasthan’s Sri Ganganagar was a delight to watch.
In times when spin bowling is increasingly starting to become more of a restrictive weapon, thanks to the mushrooming T20 leagues, Suthar brought a lot of freshness while sticking to basics — flight and turn. (PTI)
BRIEF SCORE
India 1st innings: 564/8 declared in 127 overs (Shubman Gill 126, KL Rahul 100, Rishabh Pant 81, Washington Sundar 52 not out; Mohammad Saleem 6/140).
Afghanistan 1st innings: 113/5 in 39.5 overs (Rahmat Shah 43 batting; Manav Suthar 3/21).
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