The celebratory moment of New Zealand cricketers Mitchell Santner and Rachin Ravindra went viral on day three of the second Test at the Maharashtra Cricket Association (MCA) Stadium in Pune. With Santner playing a critical role in affecting a run-out to see the back of Rishabh Pant, Ravindra displayed his affection towards the all-rounder as a video surfaced on social media.
The moment occurred immediately after Santner's throw to Tom Blundell caught Pant short of his crease at the striker's end. The viral video showed Ravindra trying to kiss the southpaw for his magical fielding effort. Pant, who has the potential to quickly take the game away from the opposition, had to walk back for 0, having made 18 in the first innings.
Mitchell Santner takes 13 wickets in the game to put New Zealand in box seat:
Meanwhile, Santner has been the wrecker-in-chief for the Kiwis, putting them in sight of a historic series win. The 32-year-old dismissed Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Sarfaraz Khan, Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Akash Deep, and Jasprit Bumrah to finish with career-best figures of 19.3-1-53-7.
With 103-run lead and the Black Caps converting it to a 359-run target for the hosts, Santner picked up from where he left off, getting rid of Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Sarfaraz Khan, and Ravichandran Ashwin to make it 13 scalps. With India losing back-to-back home Tests, it is the first time it is set to happen since 2012.
