By Hirwani Spin
BANGALORE, INDIA: Indian spinner Nardenda Hirwani cut a swathe through an illness; hit New Zealand Sid on Thursday as the touring team crashed to a 172 run defeat in the first cricket test.
Hirwani took six for 59 as New Zealand, with 13 of their 15 man squad suffering from viral fever, were dismissed for 164 shortly after lunch.
The 20 year old leg spinner, who took 16 ‘wickets on his test debut in Madras against West Indies in January, has now taken 24 wickets in two tests at an average of just 10.75.
Hirwani dismissed five of the first six New Zealand batsman as well as wicketkeeper Ian Smith, although he was helped by two dubious LBW decisions in his favor by umpire Piloo reporter.
Having deceived Trevor Franklin (16) with his flipper which uprooted the middle stump, Hirwani was lucky to have an LBW appeal against John Wright upheld.
The New Zealand Captain appeared to have been it outside the line of off stump while clearly offering a shot.
Wright, who was out for 58 including seven fours and a six, is now only 25 short of Bevan Congdon’s New Zealand Test record of 3,448 runs, although John Reid lies in second place five ahead of Wright.
‘At 92 for two, all was by no means lost for New Zealand, but a crucial blow was struck when at 107 Andrew Jones was given out LBW for 17 to Hirwani when he seemed to have gota thick inside edge on to his pad.
Article extracted from this publication >> November 25, 1988
