[Watch] Pune crowd chants ‘Mumbai cha raja Rohit Sharma’ during IND vs NZ 2nd Test 2024 

Indian Test and ODI captain Rohit Sharma has a huge fan following, evident on Day 1 of the India vs New Zealand second Test on Thursday, October 24. The match is being held at the Maharashtra Cricket Association in Pune.

The visitors won the toss and chose to bat first. As the Indian players entered the field, the crowd was buzzing, greeting their captain with chants of “Mumbai cha raja, Rohit Sharma.”

Fans can watch the video here:

Rohit had a mixed performance in the first game, scoring 2 and 52 in his two innings. However, his captaincy faced criticism from pundits due to questionable decisions, contributing to the hosts' eight-wicket loss.

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Ravichandran Ashwin provides the first breakthrough for India in the 2nd Test against New Zealand

The Kiwis won the toss and opted to bat first. Openers Tom Latham and Devon Conway navigated the first seven overs of seam bowling without losing a wicket, adding 30 runs for the visitors.

Veteran spinner Ravichandran Ashwin claimed the first wicket for India by dismissing Kiwis captain Latham for 15 runs off 22 balls.

At the time of writing, New Zealand were 45 for one after 13 overs, with Conway (21) and Will Young (8) at the crease.

The hosts made three changes to their lineup, with Shubman Gill, Washington Sundar, and Akash Deep replacing KL Rahul, Kuldeep Yadav, and Mohammed Siraj.

For New Zealand, Matt Henry was sidelined due to a glute niggle, and Mitchell Santner replaced him.

Playing XI of both teams:

India: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant (wk), Sarfaraz Khan, Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar, Ravichandran Ashwin, Akash Deep, and Jasprit Bumrah.

New Zealand: Tom Latham (c), Devon Conway, Will Young, Rachin Ravindra, Daryl Mitchell, Tom Blundel l(wk), Glenn Phillips, Mitchell Santner, Tim Southee, Ajaz Patel, and William O’Rourke.