BENGALURU: To hell and back. Well, not quite. Now that they are back where they started when the day began, it’s on the bowlers to finish what the batters started.

When Saturday dawned, the hosts still needed a few miracles to finish on the right side of the Test. They got the first miracle; an emotionally-charged thrill-a-minute partnership between Sarfaraz Khan and Rishabh Pant.  

When the first streaks of the Sun appear across the M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Sunday, the bowlers will have a target of 107 to defend.
It’s not a lot; the Kiwis, as it stands, are the favourites to take a lead in the series going into Pune next week. But it’s something to hang onto.
If there’s something about this team, they just don’t know when they are beaten. They will keep going till their every available sinew has been stretched and all possible avenues exhausted.

On Sunday morning, they will have one final chance to do something no team has ever done in the 140+ years of Tests — make a comeback from a first-innings deficit of over 350+ runs to win.

A lot will depend on how well they use the new ball. In the four balls New Zealand played before bad light brought an early halt to proceedings, Jasprit Bumrah almost had Tom Latham. He was getting some movement. However, the lights were switched on and the sky was gray. Even if the umpires were probably right to take the players off — it started raining moments after both teams left the ground — Rohit Sharma was airing his frustrations. He wanted at least one more over.