'Anything for the team' - Ishant Sharma after picking up three wickets against New Zealand while battling 'jet lag'

It was an arduous battle for Virat Kohli and Co. to thump hosts New Zealand in the past two days of the first Test at Wellington. Considering the green wicket which the Kiwis dished out for India, it was touted to be an uphill battle for the visitors to endure the Black Caps’ bowling force.

After New Zealand curbed India to a modest total of 165 runs in the first innings, the Kane Williamson-led side embraced a gritty approach to amass 216 runs on the board at the culmination of Day 2. Skipper Williamson’s 89-run knock coupled with veteran Ross Taylor’s 44 set the ball rolling for the hosts as they were successful in establishing a 51-run lead over India at the stumps of Day 2.

The Indian bowling force were successful in scalping five wickets on the second day and Ishant Sharma emerged as the best-performing pacer for Virat Kohli and Co. The lanky pacer plucked three wickets including the Kiwi opening pair to dent New Zealand’s run-flow at regular intervals.

He finished with the figures of 3/31 in his 15 overs on Day 2. Ishant’s effort was commendable considering the fact that the speedster slept barely four hours in the past two days. Despite battling the ‘jet lag’, Ishant’s bowling spells ensured that the Kiwi wickets kept tumbling at regular intervals.

Ishant Sharma suffered multiple ligament tears during Ranji Trophy

Three weeks ago, the pacer was anticipated to be ruled out of the New Zealand series after suffering multiple ligament tears in his right ankle during a Ranji Trophy fixture. However, Ishant travelled for 24 hours and arrived in New Zealand 72 hours before the start of the first Test.

“I am not happy because I have not slept for two days and I was struggling a lot today (with my body). The way I would have liked to bowl, it did not happen. They asked me to play and I played. Anything, for the team,” Ishant Sharma, who has the experience of playing 96 Tests under his hat, was quoted as saying by IndiaTV.

The pacer was content with his bowling display but he was not happy with the amount of sleep which his body has received since his arrival on the New Zealand soil.

“Not that I wasn’t happy with my bowling. I wasn’t happy with my body as I could only sleep for 40 minutes last night and day before the Test match, I slept for three hours,” said Ishant on his battle with the ‘jet lag’.

“The more you can recover (from jet lag), the better effort you can put in on the ground. There’s no better recovery than sound sleep. The sounder your sleep is, the better your body will respond on ground,” he added.

The pacer also highlighted about his injury and lauded NCA support staff for their involvement in his rehabilitation.

“All credit goes to NCA support staff as they worked really hard with me. We never really thought I have to play a Test because my MRI shows I had a complete ligament tear, not one but two tears. People said ‘he is out for six weeks’,” said Ishant.

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