"Mayank Agarwal is the most attacking batter against spin I have seen since Virender Sehwag" - Sanjay Bangar

Sanjay Bangar believes Mayank Agarwal is the most attacking Indian batter against spin in the longest version of the game since Virender Sehwag.

Agarwal scored an unbeaten 120 on the first day of the second Test against New Zealand being played at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. His knock helped Team India reach a score of 221/4 by Stumps on a truncated opening day.

While lauding Mayank Agarwal's knock during a discussion on Star Sports, Sanjay Bangar compared his game against spin to that of Virender Sehwag. He said:

"In my opinion, Mayank Agarwal is the most attacking batter against spin I have seen since Virender Sehwag for India in Test cricket. Everyone says that he steps out and plays the aerial shots well and targets the straighter boundaries."

The former India batting coach highlighted that while the big shots down the ground are Mayank Agarwal's forte, he didn't spare the short-of-a-length deliveries either. Bangar elaborated:

"But there was one special thing seen in this knock and it was also because of the extra bounce, that he played so many shots off the back foot. He played very good pull shots when the ball was slightly back of length"

Agarwal struck 14 fours and four maximums during his knock. He was particularly aggressive against the Kiwi spinners and did not let them settle into a proper line and length.

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"You know that there is pressure on your spot" - Aakash Chopra lauds Mayank Agarwal's knock

Mayank Agarwal was largely untroubled against the Kiwi pacers [P/C: BCCI]

Aakash Chopra was also asked about the best facet of Mayank Agarwal's innings. He responded:

"The start is the most difficult, although he has hit spin the most. One thing is that you know that there is pressure on your spot and there is swing and bounce at the start, sideways movement and there are seeds of doubt in your mind and it was necessary to play well to get out of that."

The former India opener added that Mayank Agarwal could only make hay against the Black Caps spinners because he survived seamers' initial spell. Chopra explained:

"He left a lot of deliveries, played close to the body as well and because of that, he became capable to get into a situation from where he could dominate spin. But if you are an opener and you don't play pace well, the story of spin does not come, it did not come in the last match."

Agarwal came into the Mumbai Test with uncertainties about his spot in the playing XI. However, with Ajinkya Rahane getting ruled out due to an injury, the 30-year-old was assured of being a part of the team and he made the best use of the opportunity.