New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson has cemented his status as one of the finest Test batsmen in the world, defying a green pitch to put his side in control against the West Indies.
After being inserted into bat on the green top at Seddon Park in Hamilton, Williamson's 154-run stand with opener Tom Latham provided the backbone for New Zealand's 2-243 at stumps on day one.
While Latham perished on 86, Williamson finished the day unbeaten on 97 after setting a formidable platform for his side on a pitch which looked to be straight from a batsman's nightmare.
New Zealand is no stranger to the odd green top, but the Seddon Park wicket was almost something never seen, with the pitch barely distinguishable from the the outfield due to a thick layer of grass on the service.
"If you said to us this morning we'd be 240-odd for two we'd obviously take that," Latham said after stumps.
"The wicket was a bit green and we've come to expect that of wickets here in New Zealand and we managed to do a lot of hard work today.
"They probably bowled a fraction short on a wicket that was offering a little bit of assistance, so we were allowed to leave balls on length.
"Even though the wickets are traditionally very green on day one here in New Zealand, they don't seem to do as much as you would probably think."
Williamson's love affair with Seddon Park was illustrated by a couple of trademark back-foot shots in the first session, tiptoeing himself to full height and punching the ball with the speed and effectiveness of a Muhammad Ali jab.
His determination not to lose concentration was also on display when telling himself off for playing at a ball he could have left with limited footwork.
Latham had a couple of lives soon before his dismissal – a missed run-out chance when he forgot about the adage of never running on a misfield and an edge over the slips cordon.
His good fortune ran out when Kemar Roach – whose father died this week – produced a fine delivery which nicked the inside edge before castling into the stumps.
The visitors were also able to get some late swing with new man Ross Taylor at the crease but it was the opening hour that dictated their disheartening position at stumps, not helped by star batsman Darren Bravo being taken off on a medicab after suffering what seemed a serious leg injury in the last half-hour.
– With Stuff.co.nz
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.