This is Rohit Sharma's era – Manoj Tiwary

Despite a late slide, the stiff resilience knitted at the start of the third day by Rishabh Pant and Sarfaraz Khan helped India to bolster their turnaround. The duo added 177 runs for the fourth wicket, driving India across the topsy-turvy currents. Sarfaraz Khan blasted an incredible 150 while Rishabh Pant fell agonizingly short of what could have been a marvellous century.

Talking to Cricbuzz, former Indian cricketer, Manoj Tiwary underlined that this is a new dawn for Indian cricket and there are ample reasons for one to be excited about it. The sheer aggression that the two knitted in the center was simply crazy and the mind-boggling display by the hosts after being put under the pump took the icing on the cake.

Tiwary stated, “This is Rohit Sharma's era. It's because of his captaincy and the freedom that he gives as a captain that allows these young players to play this way. The way Sarfaraz and Pant have set the platform is great. Just imagine if Kohli hadn't got out off the last ball, it would have been something else. But hats off to Sarfaraz and Pant. Words will fall short. These batters won't stop. They know only one way to play.”

He further added, “They have been given a license. Since Gambhir has come, it has increased. It is reflecting. The way Jaiswal stepped out to hit a six and lost his wicket, it is clear that they have been given full freedom. Otherwise, he wouldn't have played such a shot in that situation. They are scoring at 5.5 runs per over in Test cricket in front of an old ball. It is very entertaining to see the approach of these youngsters especially when you consider the match situation.”

India eventually got skittled out for 462 runs, setting a target of 107 runs for the visitors. Key contributions from Virat Kohli (70), Sarfaraz Khan (150) and Rishabh Pant (99) allowed India to keep on fighting against the formidable Kiwis.