India opener Mayank Agarwal could become the second fastest Indian to reach the milestone of 1000 Test runs when he walks out to bat in the second Test match against New Zealand starting at Christchurch on Saturday.
The 29-year-old has 964 Test runs in 15 innings at an outstanding average of 64.26 to his name at present and thus requires just 36 runs more to reach the milestone of 1000 Test runs. Cheteshwar Pujara currently holds this record having achieved the milestone in 18 innings. Vinod Kambli is the fastest to 1000 runs in Test cricket having achieved the feat in just 14 innings.
India are currently 0-1 down in the two-match series against New Zealand after their humiliating 10-wicket loss in the first Test at Wellington. But it was Agarwal who seemed like the best suited to handle the conditions among all Indian batsmen. In fact, he was the only Indian batter to score a fifty in the last match.
Agarwal scored 34 in the first innings and followed it up with a knock of 58 in the second innings at Wellington. He got starts during both of his outings but couldn’t convert them into big knocks. So, he would be determined not to lose his focus and concentration when he walks out to bat in the second Test.
He already has made a terrific start to his Test career and even has a double century to his name. The fact that he has three hundreds and four fifties, which makes it a total of seven fifty-plus scores, in just 15 innings goes on to tell about his consistency and hunger of scoring big runs.
With skipper Virat Kohli looking out of form and the likes of Prithvi Shaw and Cheteshwar Pujara looking rusty against the Kiwi pacers, India will need Agarwal to step up even more. They desperately need one of their top four batters to stay at the crease for long periods and Agarwal looks to be in the right frame of