On Day 2 of the final Test match between India and New Zealand at the storied Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, the spidercam abruptly stopped working, disrupting play at the end of the first session. The umpires had to take an early lunch break on Saturday, November 2 due to a technical issue.
On the first day, India lost four wickets before stumps as New Zealand was knocked out for 235 in their opening innings. In order to stop the New Zealand bowlers, Rishabh Pant and Shubman Gill started Day 2 at 86/4 and used a counterattacking strategy. When Ish Sodhi bowled the 30th over, both of them reached their half-centuries. It took Gill 66 balls to reach the milestone. In contrast, the wicketkeeper-batter reached his fifty in just thirty-six balls.
India kept a left-right mixture in the middle of the batting order by promoting Ravindra Jadeja before Sarfaraz Khan. Together, the seasoned all-rounder and Gill helped India reach 195/5 at the end of the 43rd over.
As Ajaz Patel prepared to bowl the second over of his new spell, the spidercam malfunctioned and fell on the square in an odd way. When play was stopped, Michael Gough and Richard Illingworth, the on-field umpires, had a conversation. The Kiwi players exchanged a few chuckles in the midst of it, seeing the humorous side of things. Daryl Mitchell joked about with the umpires until the technician came to address the problem.
A few minutes and an over ahead of schedule, the players had to head back to their separate dressing rooms as the umpires called the lunch break. As soon as the technician had resolved the issue, the players had left the park.
— Pandit Pranoob (@pranoob76889) November 2, 2024
After lunch, India loses two wickets in rapid succession.
Following the lunch break, Ajaz Patel and Glenn Phillips began the New Zealand proceedings. Phillips defeated Jadeja, who edged one to Mitchell at first slip in the fourth over of the second session.
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Ajaz dismissed Sarfaraz Khan for a four-ball duck in the next over after the young batsman attempted to defend off the front foot but was unable to account for the turn and bounce. The seventh wicket for New Zealand came as the ball kissed his glove en route to wicketkeeper Tom Blundell.