India close in on second Test and series win over New Zealand

Home side need five wickets at Wankhede Stadium to seal victory

India celebrate after taking the wicket of New Zealand batsman Daryl Mitchell during Day 3 of the second Test at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Sunday, December 5. AP

New Zealand captain Tom Latham falls on ground while playing shot. AP

India's Ravichandaran Ashwin, left, grabs a hold of Spidercam. AP

India spinner Ravichandaran Ashwin, right , celebrates the dismissal of New Zealand's Ross Taylor for six. AP

New Zealand's Daryl Mitchell plays a shot on his way to 60. AFP

New Zealand's Henry Nicholls plays a shot on his way to ??. AFP

India celebrate the dismissal of New Zealand's Tom Blundell after he was run out for a duck. AFP

India opener Mayank Agarwal plays a shot on his way to 62. AFP

New Zealand spinner Ajaz Patel celebrates after taking the wicket of India's Mayank Agarwal. AFP

Axar Patel plays shot on his way to an unbeaten 41 in India's second innings. AP

India captain Virat Kohli plays a shot on his way to 36 in his team's second innings. AFP

India's Virat Kohli is bowled by Rachin Ravindra. AP

India are just five wickets away from clinching the second Test against New Zealand after Day 3 at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.

After declaring in their second innings on 276-7, setting New Zealand an improbable victory target of 540, India quickly moved towards victory reducing the tourists to 140-5 at stumps.

Henry Nicholls, on 36, and Rachin Ravindra, on two, were still standing after Indian spinners Ravichandran Ashwin (3-27) and Axar Patel rattled through the New Zealand top-order.

The first Test in Kanpur was drawn, meaning that India are set to clinch the two-match series on Monday.

Earlier in the day, New Zealand's Ajaz Patel finished with 4-106 following his historic 10-for in the first innings.

Spinner Patel's 14-225 was the best match haul in Test cricket for any visiting bowler in India. The previous best was English fast-bowler Ian Botham’s 13-106 in 1980, also in Mumbai.

Overnight batsmen Mayank Agarwal (62) and Cheteshwar Pujara (47) put on 107 runs, taking the attack to the opposition in the first hour of play.

Agarwal, who made 150 in India's first innings of 325, reached his fifty with a six off Ajaz and followed it up with another boundary to signal his attacking intent.

He finally fell to Ajaz, who almost bowled unchanged from his end in the morning session, after another attempt to go for the big shot got him caught at long-off.

Pujara, who hit Ajaz for two successive boundaries early in the morning, was denied his fifty after being caught at slip.

Ajaz, 33, returned 10-119 in India's first innings on Day 2 to emulate England's Jim Laker and Indian spin legend Anil Kumble for 10 wickets in one innings.

He extended his bowling show for New Zealand with Rachin Ravindra (3-56) also chipping in, taking the wickets Shubman Gill (47) and skipper Virat Kohli (36).

Axar Patel hit an unbeaten 41 before India called time on their innings in the second session, with New Zealand already a wicket down by tea.

Ashwin struck first with the wicket of stand-in skipper Tom Latham for 10 and then took down Will Young and Ross Taylor in successive overs.

Daryl Mitchell resisted and raised his third Test fifty with a boundary off fast bowler Umesh Yadav. He put on 73 runs with Nicholls for the fourth wicket.

Mitchell finally fell to Axar's left-arm spin and wicketkeeper-batsman Tom Blundell was run out on nought as a raucous home crowd roared.

“The way Agarwal played in both innings for India, he set the template for how I personally wanted to try and go about, taking on the Indian spinners today," said Mitchell.

"Disappointing to not still be out there and kick on but it was nice to get a partnership going. It’s a pretty challenging surface. The ball is definitely turning there with your name on it."