During the Christchurch Test between New Zealand and England, Glenn Phillips shocked the world yet again with an incredible catch. On the second day, Ollie Pope hit a cut shot on Tim Southee's delivery, only to be caught by Phillips with a captivating dive towards his right. With this catch, Phillips added another stunning catch to his already impressive resume, leaving fans in awe and undoubtedly cementing his title as 'Superman' on the field.
After being out of the national team for over two years, Bhuvneshwar Kumar attracts major bids at the IPL mega-auction, with Royal Challengers Bengaluru paying Rs 10.75 crore for the experienced fast bowler. Other lesser-known Indian pacers, such as Deepak Chahar and Mukesh Kumar, also secure good deals as teams struggle to fill their quota of local fast bowlers. However, big names like Kane Williamson and Glenn Phillips go unsold.
On Day 1, India's Shubman Gill and Rishabh Pant put on a strong partnership to battle against New Zealand's bowlers. Gill showed his form and resilience by scoring a half-century, accompanied by Pant who also achieved a half-century. Unfortunately, New Zealand's fielder Mark Chapman dropped Gill's catch which led to his unbeaten 85 runs, providing a strong contribution towards India's successful Day 1. Jadeja and Sundar also deserve mention for dismissing New Zealand's Daryl Mitchell and Ajaz Patel, respectively.
In a dramatic turn of events, rain hindered India's progress in the first Test against New Zealand as they reached 344/3, trailing by 12 runs on day four. Sarfaraz Khan continued his impressive form with his maiden unbeaten Test century, while Rishabh Pant returned to action with a brisk 53 not out. New Zealand had posted a massive total of 402 in their second innings, with Rachin Ravindra scoring a maiden Test century. However, India's strong start with Yashasvi Jaiswal and Rohit Sharma was dampened when they were dismissed in quick succession, but Indian skipper Virat Kohli and Sarfaraz Khan added 136 runs for the third wicket before Kohli fell to Glenn Phillips on the last ball of the day. Follow the live updates of this thrilling match here.
Virat Kohli and Sarfaraz Khan put on an impressive display of counter-attacking batting on day three of the first Test against New Zealand at M Chinnaswamy Stadium. After the early loss of opener Yashasvi Jaiswal, the duo smashed fifties to lead India's fightback against the visitors, with Kohli also reaching the 9000-run milestone in Test cricket. However, just before stumps, Kohli's dismissal by New Zealand's Glenn Phillips added to the drama of the day that saw a mammoth first innings lead for the visitors and a brilliant 134 from Rachin Ravindra.
New Zealand's Rachin Ravindra and Tim Southee were unbeaten at lunch on Day 3 of the first Test against India, extending the visitors' lead to 299 runs. Ravindra, who hails from Bengaluru, showed his prowess in playing spinners on the tricky pitch, while Southee provided solid support. Despite the Indian pacers' improved performance, the Kiwis managed to hold their ground thanks to Ravindra's impressive knock.
Australian batting sensation Marnus Labuschagne was denied his 12th Test century by a spectacular one-handed catch from New Zealand's Glenn Phillips on the second day of the second Test match. In a thrilling turn of events, the catch helped the Kiwis gain the upper hand, with New Zealand standing at 134/2 at stumps with Tom Latham (65*) and Rachin Ravindra (11*) unbeaten at the crease. This was definitely a day to remember for both teams in the second and final Test match between Australia and New Zealand.
New Zealand's Glenn Phillips pulled off an incredible one-handed catch to dismiss Australia's Marnus Labuschagne on Day 2 of the second Test in Christchurch. Labuschagne, who had looked solid on 90, was left in disbelief as Phillips dived to his left and took the catch while airborne like Superman. This spectacular catch has brought the Kiwis back in the game after Matt Henry's 7-wicket haul helped restrict Australia to 256.
After their outstanding performance in the first Test against New Zealand, Australian bowlers Josh Hazlewood and Nathan Lyon have climbed the rankings to fourth and sixth place respectively, closing in on India's Jasprit Bumrah. New Zealand's Matt Henry and Glenn Phillips also made significant jumps in the rankings, while in the batting chart, Australia's Cameron Green improved by 22 places after his unbeaten century in the first Test. However, India's Virat Kohli, Yashaswi Jaiswal, and Rohit Sharma have all gained positions in the rankings while Australian batters Steve Smith, Travis Head, and Marnus Labuschagne have dropped down.
New Zealand spinner Glenn Phillips achieved a rare feat on Saturday as he became the first Kiwi spinner in 16 years to take a 5-wicket haul in a home Test match. Phillips registered figures of 5-45 in the first Test against Australia, leading the team to dismiss the visitors for 164. This historic achievement puts Phillips among some of the best New Zealand spinners, including Daniel Vettori, who also has two 7-wicket hauls at home.