When New Zealand began their first essay, few would have thought that they would be reeling at 128/7 at the end of Day 2. Mohammed Shami was bowling with seething pace and Bhuvneshwar Kumar was making the Kiwi batsmen dance to his tunes. They hopped, missed a few, tried to leave alone a couple and in the process got entangled in a pace and swing web that was difficult to come out of. In the process Bhuvneshwar picked up five, his first five-wicket haul at home and for the 26-year old, it was a dream come true moment. “It is a great feeling to get my first 5-wicket haul in India and to get it at the iconic Eden Gardens is even more special. I remember I made my first-class debut here and to comeback and register my maiden fifer in this ground is a really nice feeling,” Bhuvneshwar told BCCI.TV. Elaborating further he said, “Everyone knows that fast bowlers do not get much assistance in India and even if it does assist, the ball becomes soft over a period of time. It was my dream to get a 5-wicket haul in India and I am glad that moment finally came.” With the pitch assisting fast bowlers, Bhuvneshwar said he was always excited to bowl on the re-laid Eden pitch. “When I saw the New Zealand pacers getting good assistance from the pitch, I did get excited. The moment I knew that there was help for the bowlers, I was itching to get the red cherry in my hand. Mohammed Shami and I discussed a few things sitting back in the dressing room about the right lines and lengths to be bowled on this pitch to make the most of this surface. I wanted to make the most of it by pitching at the right areas. This five-wicket haul is a result of that. When you get pace, swing and bounce in your favour and get wickets, it boosts your confidence.” The sun was beating hard in the afternoon of the first session. But the moment it became overcast, conditions were more suitable for fast bowling according to Bhuvneshwar. “Conditions weren’t overcast early in the morning and there was decent help for the bowlers. But we were sure that the new ball would do its bit in the 1st session of today’s play. We wanted to make use of the uneven bounce on the pitch. “There was swing with the new ball and the surface was a bit uneven. We told ourselves that we will bowl wicket to wicket and let the ball do the rest since some were keeping low and some got good bounce. Except Ross Taylor’s wicket, I think the rest of the wickets have been a result of the pitch keeping slow or getting good bounce from the same length. It is not easy for a batsman to walk in on this pitch and play his shots right from the beginning.” Though each of his five wickets were a visual delight, Ross Taylor’s wicket satisfied him the most. “I feel Ross Taylor’s wicket was special because it was the kind of wicket that is a delight to any fast bowler. To get a batsman edge one and caught in the slip gives pleasure to any fast bowler. I also feel Martin Guptill’s wicket was a result of bowling wicket to wicket. That was the reason the ball kicked off from a nice length and got some bounce to brush his elbow and crash into the stumps. It was important to keep him hooked on to the off stump line, so that the ball could either get a nick to the slips or hit the stumps. Our plan worked. Though Bhuvi hogged the limelight with a fifer, he credited Shami for bowling equally well. “There was a tinge of grass on the pitch and Shami bowled very well from the other end. He told me that I would get good assistance from the other end. We wanted to execute our plans in the final session because it is not easy for a team to bat through the session. We wanted to take as many wickets as we could and do our processes right instead of thinking about the result.”