Australia 178-2; England 181-6 – England win by four wickets
• Beth Mooney also hits century for Australia but tourists level series
• Beth Mooney also hits century for Australia but tourists level series
Sunday, 24 December 2017
Starc out of Boxing Day Test
Australia pace bowler Mitchell Starc has been ruled out of the Boxing Day Test against England with a heel injury and will be replaced by Jackson Bird.
Tuesday, 12 December 2017
2 Tests NZ 2-0 WI
Day 1
West Indies 134
New Zealand 85/2 (38 ov)
New Zealand trail by 49 runs with 8 wickets remaining in the 1st innings
Neil Wagner's role in New Zealand's set-up is unambiguous. In an attack with world-class swing bowlers, Wagner is tasked with pushing batsmen back with a hard length.
When West Indies' openers put on a display of impeccable defensive technique on the first morning, New Zealand changed tact, employing a barrage of short balls to a solid top order. It played right into Wagner's hands, who ripped through West Indies with a career-best 7 for 39, the fourth-best Test figures by a New Zealand bowler, to topple the visitors over for 134 on the first day in Wellington. New Zealand then added 85 runs for the loss of two wickets, cutting their deficit to just 49 at stumps.
After Kraigg Brathwaite and Kieran Powell put on a 59-run opening partnership, captain Kane Williamson's hand was forced. He had a short leg and leg gully, and pushed out fine leg and square leg for Wagner. West Indies, it seemed, were more comfortable pulling than fending. Brathwaite's first boundary was a top-edged pull for six over the keeper in the 21st over.
Wagner, from around the wicket, continued to angle short deliveries into their ribs. Brathwaite, trying to defend with a straight bat, then awkwardly fended a catch to short leg, only giving Wagner more oomph in his spell.
On the stroke of lunch, a short ball from Trent Boult didn't climb as steeply as Powell had expected. He dropped his hands to let it go, but the ball ricocheted low to third slip off the glove. The scales evened out after a dominating morning for West Indies.
The session turned decisively in New Zealand's favour as Shimron Hetmyer, who struck three delectable boundaries in his 13, also fended a catch to second slip, unable to sway out of the line of a short delivery from Wagner. Those wickets prior to lunch did substantial mental damage, and their change in technique was evident.
Shai Hope gloved a wafted pull to the keeper down the leg side two balls after the break. Sunil Ambris, standing deep in the crease anticipating another bouncer, clipped a back-of-a-length delivery to fine leg, but his backward momentum meant his back foot clipped the stump. Ambris hit wicket b Wagner 0 (1) on debut.
Roston Chase also chose to stand leg side of the ball to get into a better position to face the short delivery. All that helped him do was clip a leg-side delivery into the hands of leg gully. The ball of the day came immediately after. Wagner delivered the perfect yorker to Jason Holder off his first ball. Not crouching as much as he should have, the ball crept under Holder's poke to hit off stump.
A score of 59 for 0 quickly turned miserable as West Indies slumped to 105 for 9. The last pair of Shannon Gabriel and Kemar Roach added a defiant 29-run stand before Wagner had Gabriel caught at second slip to finish with seven wickets.
New Zealand's openers Tom Latham and Jeet Raval were rather comfortable for the majority of the evening session. On a pitch with sufficient grass, but almost no lateral movement, it was hard grafting for the seamers. Latham left well, and drove and pulled effectively too en route to 37 before he swatted a pull to mid-on off Holder.
Roach then gave West Indies a chance by dismissing New Zealand's best batsman, Williamson. A short ball that started wide enticed Williamson into a cut, but inward movement after pitching made it a risky stroke. Williamson ended up slashing a ball too close to him to the finer of two gullies.
It was a sour start to the tour for West Indies, but they started the day well. Both openers played close to their body and waited for the bowlers to err in areas they could benefit from. They would also have been pleasantly surprised by the lack of either seam or swing for New Zealand's seamers through the first session.
Boult often hit the perfect area - fuller than a good length - in his opening spell. He usually gets his wickets when the ball swings from that length, but with no lateral movement available, the openers were comfortable leaving or defending. Boult began the day with three straight maidens.
Matt Henry, brought in for Tim Southee, searched for movement with a full length, but overpitched often. Powell, in particular, was then rewarded for his patience as he drove straight productively.
Day 2
West Indies 134
New Zealand 447/9 (127 ov)
New Zealand lead by 313 runs with 1 wicket remaining in the 1st innings
Colin de Grandhomme capitalised on a strong platform laid by fifties from Ross Taylor and Henry Nicholls to raze West Indies with a stunning onslaught that all but batted them out of the Wellington Test. Along with Tom Blundell's debut fifty, de Grandhomme hammered a 71-ball maiden ton, the second fastest by a New Zealand batsman in Tests, to thrust New Zealand to 447 for 9, a lead of 313.
De Grandhomme has one of the strongest bottom hands in international cricket, but it seemed West Indies weren't aware. They attacked his ribs, and when that didn't work, they fed him on his pads. His first eight boundaries were through the leg side, forcing West Indies to change their line of attack, but by then, he was in unstoppable hitting rhythm.
He struck 14 boundaries - 11 fours and three sixes - before chipping a catch to long-on off Roston Chase in search for another. He contributed almost 60% of New Zealand's 180 runs in the final session.
Colin de Grandhomme, who struck his maiden Test century off 71 deliveries in a single session of the second day in Wellington, was not instructed by the dressing room to play as aggressively as he did. Instead, de Grandhomme said, in more than a few instances, the balls "were there to go so I had to put them away."
"No instructions," de Grandhomme said after the day's play. "I was just asked to do what I do because the boys did the hard work in the beginning and made it a lot easier for me."
De Grandhomme was acknowledging the efforts of Ross Taylor and Henry Nicholls, who struck half-centuries to lift the team to 272. Another key contributor was debutant Tom Blundell, who was unbeaten on 57 at stumps after adding 148 with de Grandhomme for the seventh wicket.
"He was very calm, confident and chill and he made it a lot easier out there for me too," de Grandhomme acknowledged.
The only disappointment for de Grandhomme, who broke Gilbert Jessop's record that had stood for over a hundred years, was that he fell without fully capitalizing the chance to gain an even bigger advantage.
"Disappointed at not getting through to the end of the day, probably really breaking them [West Indies] down and making them come back tomorrow."
Blundell played the supporting act in a 148-run, seventh-wicket partnership. He left confidently early in the innings, and gradually showed off his range. He used his feet well, milking the spinners on both sides of the wicket, and used cross-batted strokes, the late cut in particular, against the quicks. He finished with an unbeaten 57 off 100 balls.
Taylor and Nicholls had earlier shared a 127-run diligent stand that left West Indies with insufficient resources to counter the lower order. Over the last year across formats, Taylor has often consumed too many deliveries to kick his innings into gear. On the first evening in Wellington, he had made 12 off 32 after weathering a testing spell, but in favourable batting conditions on the second day, Taylor's positive intent was evident from the outset. He struck a 160-ball 93 to put New Zealand in control.
When Taylor defended, he did with soft hands, looking for singles either side of the wicket. When West Indies' seamers offered width, he slashed behind point and drove through cover. Sunny overhead conditions offering no lateral movement aided his strokeplay.
When West Indies switched to using the short ball as a tactic, just like New Zealand had done on the first day, Taylor took on the pull, albeit with middling success. He scored 20 runs through third man, 19 through cover and 13 behind square on the leg side, those three areas producing 79% of his runs before lunch.
Attempting to stem the copious flow of runs, West Indies set defensive fields with the new ball on the horizon. Taylor then tucked, nudged and pushed his way towards a hundred in an insipid period.
The game kicked back to life when West Indies took the new ball in the 82nd over. Kemar Roach, from wide of the crease, jagged one away late from a leaden-footed Taylor. The set-up, check. Off the first ball of his next over, Roach got one to seam back in to beat Taylor's inside edge and strike him plumb in front of off. The wicket, check. Taylor fell seven runs short of his fourth successive ton at home against West Indies.
Nicholls, a naturally attacking player, found his fluency immediately at the other end. He opened his account with a flick behind square for four off his first delivery. He did leave well through his innings, waiting for West Indies to stray into his pads to accumulate his runs. In the first over after lunch, he gloved a pull off Jason Holder to the keeper, but replays showed the bowler had overstepped. Nicholls only grew more patient thereafter.
Roach produced West Indies' only wicket of the morning session with an unplayable delivery. Bowling from around the wicket in the 48th over, he got one to pitch outside leg and jag away prodigiously off the seam. On 42, Raval, prodding from the crease, didn't account for as much movement and edged behind. An inch shorter and the ball would have beaten the edge. An inch fuller and Raval would have got behind the line.
The bowlers lacked the discipline, conceding 12 no-balls, and giving New Zealand several boundary-hitting options. All it did was gradually erode their chances in the Test.
Day 3
West Indies 134 and 214 for 2 trail New Zealand 520 for 9 dec. by 172 runs
New Zealand hurtled to a profoundly commanding position in the first seven sessions of the Wellington Test, but the opposition began to resist on the third day. West Indies were still a long way back - 172 in arrears with two second-innings wickets already spent. But thanks to Kraigg Brathwaite's fortitude, a spark from Kieran Powell, and a little flash from Shimron Hetmyer, their hopes of making something out of this match are not yet extinguished. Brathwaite remained at the crease on 79, with Shai Hope for company.
But perhaps this was always going to be a batting day - the Basin Reserve pitch tends to flatten dramatically as matches wear on. In the morning, Tom Blundell had progressed from an overnight 57 not out to triple figures, becoming the first wicketkeeper-batsman to make a debut Test century since Matt Prior in 2007.
What was remarkable was that he scored 52 of his eventual 107 not out in the company of Trent Boult - the pair putting on an unbeaten stand of 78 for the last wicket. Soon after Blundell reached his century, New Zealand declared on 520 for 9, taking a 386-run advantage into the second innings.
Few might have expected West Indies to claim momentum as dramatically as they did after lunch, however. If one aspect of play epitomised the vigour they brought to those sessions, it was their bristling confidence when facing their tormentor from the first dig: Neil Wagner. On day one, Wagner had collected 7 for 39 in 14 overs, as batsmen almost raced each other back to the pavilion.
On Sunday, Wagner again deployed his familiar lifters from around the wicket, but suddenly, the West Indies top order was almost disdainful of the tactic, pulling, hacking, and cracking him through the leg side throughout the afternoon and evening sessions. Wagner was left nursing figures of 0 for 89 from 15 overs by stumps, having suffered 14 fours and two sixes. Unable himself to make a breakthrough, Trent Boult was also visibly frustrated by the closing stages of the day.
That it is around their senior opener that West Indies' resistance built was unsurprising. Brathwaite did as Brathwaite does, leaving judiciously, defending solidly, and awaiting the bad balls to dispatch to the fence. His two early boundaries were the result of wayward leg-side deliveries that he simply nudged fine. He was a little more ambitious in the evening session, even running at Mitchell Santner to launch him over the deep midwicket boundary.
His patience and assuredness at the start of the innings allowed Powell to take risks at the other end. It was Powell who began the assault on Wagner by hitting two sixes and a four off consecutive Wagner balls. Having survived a close lbw shout off Boult early in his innings - a not-out decision that would have been overturned had New Zealand reviewed - Powell went on to make 40 off 55 balls before losing concentration and giving Matt Henry a simple return catch.
Hetmyer's 66 was sprightly and attractive, as he and Brathwaite combined for a second-wicket stand worth 94. Having been reprieved via a batting review on seven, Hetmyer took to playing Wagner with particular aplomb, driving and pulling imperiously. He didn't always keep his shots on the ground, but found empty space whenever he went aerial, once lofting Boult for a straight six with sublime timing. That Boult over, the 42nd of the innings, also featured two Hetmyer fours: down the ground, and over midwicket.
Like for Powell, it was a misjudgement of Henry's pace that brought his wicket, after the tea break. Attempting to turn Henry towards the leg side, Hetmyer succeeded only in sending a leading edge to extra cover.
Hope and Brathwaite ensured there were no further wickets before the end of the day by showing a little reticence as stumps drew near, but the bad balls were still punished. All up, day three saw 287 runs scored for the fall of just two wickets. New Zealand will hope to get early breakthroughs on day four, to ensure the match does not progress to a fifth day, but if West Indies bat as they have so far in the innings, victory will have to be hard-won, for New Zealand.
Day 4
West Indies 134 & 319
New Zealand 520/9d
New Zealand won by an innings and 67 runs
The defiance that West Indies had found on day three wilted, their wickets fell in a heap for the second time in the Test, and New Zealand sped to an innings-and-67-run victory - the hosts' quicks having wiped the opposition out with the second new ball. Following the top-order partnerships West Indies had mounted on Sunday, it was the rate of their demise on Monday that was dispiriting. They added only 105 to the overnight score, and lost their last seven wickets for 62 runs, in the space of 20 overs.
The New Zealand quicks shared the wickets around, as the opposition perished to a series of poor strokes. Matt Henry added the wicket of Roston Chase to the two dismissals he had effected on day three, to finish with figures of 3 for 57. Trent Boult, Neil Wagner and Colin de Grandhomme claimed two wickets apiece meanwhile - Wagner's wickets particularly significant, after he had been clobbered by the top order on Sunday.
This result means that New Zealand go to the second Test without having been stretched at Wellington. Although there were difficult moments in the field, particularly while Shimron Hetmyer and Kraigg Brathwaite batted together on the third evening, no bowler was required to deliver more than 45 overs in the Test, and at no point did West Indies muster a century stand.
It was the wicket of innings top-scorer Brathwaite - the only dismissal that went to a spinner in this innings - that set West Indies' slide into motion. Having begun the day on 79, Brathwaite had progressed without incident into the 90s, as New Zealand rested their frontline quicks so they might be deployed only after the second new ball became available. Even before the 80th over rolled around, however, Brathwaite lost his wicket. Having nudged a legside Mitchell Santner delivery to the fine leg boundary, he misjudged the pace of the very next Santner delivery, and it brushed his back pad before it hit his bat. The ensuing lbw appeal was turned down on the field, but the batsman was given out upon review. Only 17 runs had been added to the overnight score at that stage.
Then, from the 86th over, came the rapid collapse. Shai Hope, whose innings had been defined by its reticence, was dismissed playing a defensive shot - a Boult lifter finding his outside edge, then Kane Williamson's hands in the gully. Roston Chase, who had hit Boult for consecutive boundaries to get his innings under way, did not last long following Hope's exit, inside-edging a wide Henry ball on to his stumps.
West Indies went to lunch with five wickets remaining, but New Zealand needed less than an hour after resumption to close the game out. Debutant Sunil Ambris edged de Grandhomme to wide slip, first ball after the break. Then, next over, Shane Dowrich slashed Wagner to point - it was the first ball Dowrich had faced in the session. The tail was in no mood to resist. Kemar Roach, Jason Holder and Miguel Cummins were all out in the space of 28 balls.
What was particularly disappointing for the West Indies was that the pitch had long since begun to favour batsman, and though the second new ball offered the New Zealand seamers bounce and carry, there was no dramatic movement. The only positive for the visitors, apart from some decent top-order scores, is that they now have an extra day of preparation for the Hamilton Test, which begins on Saturday.
2nd Test
Day 1
New Zealand 286/7 (87 ov)
West Indies
A measured 84 from Jeet Raval, and a Colin de Grandhomme blitz bookended New Zealand's day, but it was West Indies' quicks who made the best of it, starting off slowly, then working themselves into a fine rhythm by stumps. The hosts are still nicely placed, at 286 for 7, with the pitch expected to get quicker on days two and three. However, in breaking through to the tail with the second new ball, West Indies have given themselves a chance in this match - which is more than what could have been said at a similar stage of the game in Wellington.
It was Shannon Gabriel who, having leaked boundaries with the first new ball, inflicted important blows with the second, dismissing de Grandhomme and Mitchell Santner after the pair had put on 76 for the sixth wicket.
He had also claimed the wicket of Raval during West Indies' resurgent period in the middle of the day. New Zealand had had 154 runs for the loss of just one wicket, before Gabriel, Kemar Roach, Miguel Cummins and Raymon Reifer combined to claim four wickets either side of the tea break. Where Gabriel bowled both good spells and poor ones through the course of the day, Cummins, Roach and debutant left-armer Reifer were much more consistent, delivering tight lines and muzzling New Zealand's batsmen when they threatened to attack. Between the three of them, they claimed four wickets and conceded only 118 runs from 53 combined overs.
That West Indies ended in a creditable position is testament to the attack's fortitude, for their day had not begun well. Gabriel was driven for two boundaries by Raval in the first over, and had been guilty of pitching too full -perhaps in search of swing or seam movement, which did not eventuate. Raval was assured through that first session, pulling with authority and rotating the strike with ease, as he had Tom Latham built an opening partnership of 65. The scoring did slow down soon after lunch, however. Kane Williamson, who replaced Latham at the crease after the opener had gloved a pull shot off Cummins, was left scoreless for the first 17 balls he faced in the second session, 12 of which were delivered by Reifer. That period of tight bowling from West Indies helped produce the wickets that came later in the session - Williamson caught behind down the leg side off Cummins, before Gabriel drew an outside edge from Raval with a length ball that seamed across the batsman.
When, soon after tea, Roach and Reifer also struck in quick succession to remove Ross Taylor and Henry Nicholls, New Zealand had lost four wickets for 45 runs, and were reduced to 189 for 5.
It was at this stage that de Grandhomme reclaimed some ground for his side. Having taken 11 balls to make his first run, and having perhaps been dropped by the wicketkeeper off the offspin of Roston Chase for 8, de Grandhomme walloped 42 runs - including three sixes and a four off chase - off 25 balls, to register a half-century. He used Seddon Park's small boundaries to his advantage, as even some good deliveries were muscled to the fence. He had threatened to reassert New Zealand's control over the match when West Indies took the second new ball, and Gabriel struck immediately. Mitchell Santner lost his off stump to a ball that pitched on leg and nipped slightly back, beating his booming drive. De Grandhomme was himself dismissed in similar fashion, though for him the ball seamed in the other direction.
Tom Blundell, New Zealand's debutant centurion from the last match, remained not out alongside Neil Wagner at stumps.
Though West Indies will be pleased with the manner in which they closed out the day, there will be some consternation about their over rate. They were three overs short of the target of 90, even though the extra half-hour was used. That regular captain Jason Holder is suspended for this match is of course down to West Indies having been too slow to complete their overs in the first Test. This time, it is stand-in captain Kraigg Brathwaite who is at risk of being penalised.
Day 2
New Zealand 373
West Indies 215/8 (64 ov)
West Indies trail by 158 runs with 2 wickets remaining in the 1st innings
Trent Boult and Tim Southee pillaged 61 runs together at the start of the day, then claimed two wickets apiece, and held one spectacular catch each, as they set off and then perpetuated West Indies' dramatic decline on a rain-interrupted day.
By stumps, New Zealand had a stranglehold on the Test. Their opposition, eight down, and still 158 runs short of the hosts' 373, were facing a long climb back into contention. Only Kraigg Brathwaite made a substantial score, hitting 66 off 116 deliveries while several batsmen made promising starts and perished around him. Having ended the first day with so much momentum, and even begun day two with a wicket in the first over, West Indies were guilty of failing to apply themselves on a pitch that - while lively - was not the challenge their scoreline made it seem.
It was in the eighth over of the day, with New Zealand's score on 312 for 9, that Tim and Trent's day-two adventure began. Getting off the mark with an enterprising uppercut for four over the slips off Shannon Gabriel, Boult tried the shot again next over, and this time fetched six for it. Before long he and Southee were in the middle of a full-scale blitz, Boult hitting five fours and two sixes in his 27-ball 37 not out, while Southee cracked 31 off 39, hitting two leg-side sixes and a four of his own. They were aided by Seddon Park's modest dimensions, as even mis-hits proved a challenge to West Indies' fielders. But there was spunk to go with the luck - Boult backing off awkwardly against Miguel Cummins at one stage, only to reach out and blast past point a ball that might have shaved the top of off stump.
New Zealand had begun the day in danger of not making it to 300, but thanks largely to their No. 10 and No. 11, 87 runs were added to the overnight score. Kemar Roach, who dismissed Neil Wagner third ball of the day (thanks to a flying catch at gully by Shai Hope) claimed the final wicket to finish with figures of 3 for 58, while Gabriel, who also took a day-two wicket, ended with 4 for 119.
It was in the field, and with the ball, however, that Boult and Southee really left their mark on this Test. Gaining more bounce and carry from the surface than West Indies had managed (though it is possible the pitch had quickened up), they began beating edges almost immediately. Southee took the wicket of Kieran Powell in the first over, having the batsman caught behind for zero. Boult took longer to make his breakthrough, dismissing the spirited Shimron Hetmyer with a sublime return catch, leaping to his left.
Having tottered to 46 for 2, West Indies then seemed to be regaining their composure while Brathwaite and Hope were at the crease, but when play resumed after a rain delay of almost two hours, more wickets were in store. Hope nicked one to the slips off Southee soon after play re-started, then Roston Chase and Sunil Ambris both departed in quick succession - the latter treading on his stumps to the bowling of Boult, as he played a back-foot shot on the leg side. This was the second time in three innings that Ambris was out hit wicket.
When Southee caught Brathwaite spectacularly on the juggle soon after - the ball hitting the tips of his outstretch hands at short cover, only to bounce out and then be re-taken just before it hit the turf behind him - West Indies had lost four wickets for 45 runs. Brathwaite had been the player holding the innings together, keeping out the good balls and finding boundaries behind the wicket - though he did have some luck when he was dropped off Boult in the slips, on 14. He left West Indies at 135 for 6 - in danger of not making 200. Thankfully, for the visitors, Shane Dowrich struck a belligerent 35 before top-edging a pull off Neil Wagner, and debutant Raymon Reifer moved to an unbeaten 22 by stumps.
Southee returned New Zealand's best figures of the day, his two wickets only costing him 34 runs. Colin de Grandhomme and Wagner also had two wickets to their name. Mitchell Santner's left-arm spin was not required.
Day 3
New Zealand 373 & 291/8d
West Indies 221 & 30/2 (8 ov, target: 444)
West Indies require another 414 runs with 8 wickets remaining
New Zealand's stranglehold on the Hamilton Test grew tighter on day three, as they piled on the runs to set West Indies 444 to chase, and claimed two wickets before stumps to begin the victory push.
Ross Taylor's 107 not out was instrumental to strengthening New Zealand's position - the hundred taking him equal with Kane Williamson and Martin Crowe, who hold the New Zealand record, with 17 Test centuries. Williamson himself struck a lively fifty to steady the innings after West Indies had struck early blows, and Trent Boult was impressive again with the ball, taking wickets off successive deliveries in the morning, before making the first incision of the fourth innings as the day waned.
It was not as if West Indies were substantially outperformed on the day - just that they had ceded so much ground already that they required a near-miraculous effort to reimpose themselves on the match. Their quicks were good in patches - Miguel Cummins and Shannon Gabriel running hot at various points through the day. In one especially hostile spell, Cummins bowled Williamson with a searing yorker from outside the off stump, had Henry Nicholls nicking off to a well-directed short ball, and would also have had the wicket of Mitchell Santner had wicketkeeper Shane Dowrich managed to hold a difficult overhead chance off Santner's top edge.
Gabriel, meanwhile, prospered with fast length balls aimed at the stumps. He claimed two wickets, one of which was an lbw of Colin de Grandhomme - a decision that was overturned in New Zealand's favour only after a confused third-umpire's review.
Taylor's, meanwhile, was an innings of moderation. Sixty balls he took to hit his first boundary, having kept out some excellent deliveries from Cummins and Gabriel in that time. At no stage during his knock was he hurried; he was content usually to push the ball into gaps, keeping that brutal cut and those bludgeoned drives in check. Of his first fifty runs, 38 came from singles and twos. The only bowler who troubled him consistently was Gabriel, who beat him for pace repeatedly, and had even drawn and outside edge when Taylor was on 35, only for the gully fielder to grass the low chance.
After tea, Taylor's pace quickened - the singles coming more frequently than before, and Cummins even suffering two disdainful pulls for four in front of square. Having got out on 93 at the Basin Reserve, Taylor didn't dally long in the nineties, taking only nine deliveries to move to triple figures. In addition to having equaled the New Zealand record, this is a special ton for Taylor: his longtime friend and mentor Martin Crowe had said Taylor would reach and surpass his own tally of 17 centuries.
Earlier, West Indies had had a brief opportunity to spark a New Zealand collapse, when they dismissed the openers with 42 on the board, but Williamson's energetic innings sucked the worst of the venom out of their bowling. Having arrived at 11 for 1, Williamson began to leave the ball judiciously, and defend with assurance. He batted out 26 balls before the expansive strokes began to appear. His two first boundaries were made possible by fielding errors at point and deep square leg, but then the 33 balls he faced before lunch yielded 42 runs. His fifty was brought up via a leg glance to the fine leg boundary immediately after he had socked Shannon Gabriel past mid-off. It was an important score for Williamson, for he had gone five international innings without a fifty - a significant stretch for such a consistent batsman.
Elsewhere in the New Zealand innings, batsmen got starts and were undone when more substantial scores beckoned. Tom Latham, Mitchell Santner and Colin de Grandhomme all made it past 20 before being dismissed, generally by very good West Indies bowling. None of the dismissals seemed to dent New Zealand much, so secure were they already in the game. When Williamson declared, New Zealand had made 291 for 8 in the second dig.
As had been the case at the Basin Reserve, West Indies' first-innings indiscretions meant that they began the second innings with only a miniscule chance of avoiding defeat. That chance would become worse before stumps. Kieran Powell was out for his second duck of the match - squared up by a short delivery from Boult that took his edge and flew low to third slip. Shimron Hetmyer sparkled briefly again, playing a dismissive pull and a searing on-drive for four, but he was out cheaply again, just lofting a full Tim Southee delivery into the hands of mid-off.
West Indies must take heart from their successful pursuit of 322 at Headingley earlier this year. The target in front of them now, however, will take even more grit and resilience - the likes of which they are yet to show for an extended period, on this tour.
Day 4
New Zealand 373 & 291/8d
West Indies 221 & 203 (target: 444)
New Zealand won by 240 runs
Trent Boult and Tim Southee shot out the top order, Neil Wagner bruised the batsmen in the middle, and Mitchell Santner cleaned up the tail, as New Zealand cruised to a 240-run victory at Seddon Park. West Indies' second innings featured only one brave stand - a 78-run association for the sixth wicket between Roston Chase and Raymon Riefer. Only on the first day of this Test can the visitors be said to have been in the hunt for victory. Avoiding defeat was always going to be difficult after giving up a first-innings lead of 152, but West Indies would perhaps be disappointed with the speed of their demise.
New Zealand, meanwhile, made a strong start to their home summer, as their quicks bowled themselves into a rhythm, and key batsmen ran into form. The only downside for the hosts is that having played no Tests since March, they now have no long-format matches scheduled until March next year.
Neil Wagner is ecstatic as he sends back Shane Dowrich for a golden duck Getty Images
It was Wagner and his hostility that made the greatest impression on the final day, and set New Zealand on track for a day-four finish. Combative and intense as ever, and aided by a Seddon Park track receptive to his mode of operation, he sent a torrent of deliveries at the batsmen's ribs, and regularly threatened their throats, clearly taking pleasure in their discomfort. The bodyline barrage began in his first over of the day. Immediately after being cover-driven for four by Shai Hope, he struck the batsman flush on an unprotected forearm. The follow up: another bouncer - up near the neck this time. Hope could not control his hook, which finished up in the hands of long leg.
In his next two overs, Wagner claimed two more victims. He got a ball to rear up off a back-of-a-length and struck Sunil Ambris painfully on the forearm - a blow that required the attention of a physiotherapist, and would turn out to have caused a fracture. Ambris initially stayed in the middle after receiving the blow, but one more ball from Wagner in the following over - this one at the ribs - was enough to convince him to head for the safety of the dressing room. He did not return to bat.
West Indies fined for slow over rate
The West Indies players were fined 20% of their match fee, and stand-in captain Kraigg Brathwaite 40% of his, after the team was deemed to be two overs short its target in Hamilton. As per ICC regulations, the team is fined 10% of their match fee for each over they fall short, and the captain is fined twice that.
Brathwaite was already standing in as captain due to Jason Holder being suspended for previous over-rate offences - two minor over-rate offences in a Test within 12 months results in the captain being suspended.
Shane Dowrich, the man who replaced Ambris at the crease, was one of the few West Indies batsmen to avoid being struck by Wagner, but that is because he only lasted two balls. In fending off a another uncomfortable rib-high delivery, Dowrich sent a sharp catch to short leg, who claimed the chance to his right. Having also struck Chase on the upper body, Wagner would be the man to break that sixth-wicket partnership, prompting another mis-hit hook, which was again gobbled up by an advancing long leg.
While Wagner had his victims caught on the legside, Boult and Southee went the more conventional route: having them caught behind the wicket on the offside. Kraigg Brathwaite was the first batsman to be dismissed on Tuesday, slapping a Boult delivery to Williamson, who took the sharp chance at head height. Williamson would see more action in that position later on. Riefer, who ground his way to a 109-ball 29 - sent a low catch in that direction, and Williamson made an incredibly difficult chance seem simple, taking the catch at shin height with his left hand.
Chase was positive through the course of his 64 off 98 balls, but it was his ability to resist hooking Wagner that allowed him to survive so long. He scored his runs through the offside instead - particularly backward of point. When he was dismissed, New Zealand were on the home stretch. Kemar Roach opened his shoulders during a 44-ball 32, but Santner struck in successive deliveries to end that salvo, and the match.
West Indies 134
New Zealand 85/2 (38 ov)
New Zealand trail by 49 runs with 8 wickets remaining in the 1st innings
Neil Wagner's role in New Zealand's set-up is unambiguous. In an attack with world-class swing bowlers, Wagner is tasked with pushing batsmen back with a hard length.
When West Indies' openers put on a display of impeccable defensive technique on the first morning, New Zealand changed tact, employing a barrage of short balls to a solid top order. It played right into Wagner's hands, who ripped through West Indies with a career-best 7 for 39, the fourth-best Test figures by a New Zealand bowler, to topple the visitors over for 134 on the first day in Wellington. New Zealand then added 85 runs for the loss of two wickets, cutting their deficit to just 49 at stumps.
After Kraigg Brathwaite and Kieran Powell put on a 59-run opening partnership, captain Kane Williamson's hand was forced. He had a short leg and leg gully, and pushed out fine leg and square leg for Wagner. West Indies, it seemed, were more comfortable pulling than fending. Brathwaite's first boundary was a top-edged pull for six over the keeper in the 21st over.
Wagner, from around the wicket, continued to angle short deliveries into their ribs. Brathwaite, trying to defend with a straight bat, then awkwardly fended a catch to short leg, only giving Wagner more oomph in his spell.
On the stroke of lunch, a short ball from Trent Boult didn't climb as steeply as Powell had expected. He dropped his hands to let it go, but the ball ricocheted low to third slip off the glove. The scales evened out after a dominating morning for West Indies.
The session turned decisively in New Zealand's favour as Shimron Hetmyer, who struck three delectable boundaries in his 13, also fended a catch to second slip, unable to sway out of the line of a short delivery from Wagner. Those wickets prior to lunch did substantial mental damage, and their change in technique was evident.
Shai Hope gloved a wafted pull to the keeper down the leg side two balls after the break. Sunil Ambris, standing deep in the crease anticipating another bouncer, clipped a back-of-a-length delivery to fine leg, but his backward momentum meant his back foot clipped the stump. Ambris hit wicket b Wagner 0 (1) on debut.
Roston Chase also chose to stand leg side of the ball to get into a better position to face the short delivery. All that helped him do was clip a leg-side delivery into the hands of leg gully. The ball of the day came immediately after. Wagner delivered the perfect yorker to Jason Holder off his first ball. Not crouching as much as he should have, the ball crept under Holder's poke to hit off stump.
A score of 59 for 0 quickly turned miserable as West Indies slumped to 105 for 9. The last pair of Shannon Gabriel and Kemar Roach added a defiant 29-run stand before Wagner had Gabriel caught at second slip to finish with seven wickets.
New Zealand's openers Tom Latham and Jeet Raval were rather comfortable for the majority of the evening session. On a pitch with sufficient grass, but almost no lateral movement, it was hard grafting for the seamers. Latham left well, and drove and pulled effectively too en route to 37 before he swatted a pull to mid-on off Holder.
Roach then gave West Indies a chance by dismissing New Zealand's best batsman, Williamson. A short ball that started wide enticed Williamson into a cut, but inward movement after pitching made it a risky stroke. Williamson ended up slashing a ball too close to him to the finer of two gullies.
It was a sour start to the tour for West Indies, but they started the day well. Both openers played close to their body and waited for the bowlers to err in areas they could benefit from. They would also have been pleasantly surprised by the lack of either seam or swing for New Zealand's seamers through the first session.
Boult often hit the perfect area - fuller than a good length - in his opening spell. He usually gets his wickets when the ball swings from that length, but with no lateral movement available, the openers were comfortable leaving or defending. Boult began the day with three straight maidens.
Matt Henry, brought in for Tim Southee, searched for movement with a full length, but overpitched often. Powell, in particular, was then rewarded for his patience as he drove straight productively.
Day 2
West Indies 134
New Zealand 447/9 (127 ov)
New Zealand lead by 313 runs with 1 wicket remaining in the 1st innings
Colin de Grandhomme capitalised on a strong platform laid by fifties from Ross Taylor and Henry Nicholls to raze West Indies with a stunning onslaught that all but batted them out of the Wellington Test. Along with Tom Blundell's debut fifty, de Grandhomme hammered a 71-ball maiden ton, the second fastest by a New Zealand batsman in Tests, to thrust New Zealand to 447 for 9, a lead of 313.
De Grandhomme has one of the strongest bottom hands in international cricket, but it seemed West Indies weren't aware. They attacked his ribs, and when that didn't work, they fed him on his pads. His first eight boundaries were through the leg side, forcing West Indies to change their line of attack, but by then, he was in unstoppable hitting rhythm.
He struck 14 boundaries - 11 fours and three sixes - before chipping a catch to long-on off Roston Chase in search for another. He contributed almost 60% of New Zealand's 180 runs in the final session.
Colin de Grandhomme, who struck his maiden Test century off 71 deliveries in a single session of the second day in Wellington, was not instructed by the dressing room to play as aggressively as he did. Instead, de Grandhomme said, in more than a few instances, the balls "were there to go so I had to put them away."
"No instructions," de Grandhomme said after the day's play. "I was just asked to do what I do because the boys did the hard work in the beginning and made it a lot easier for me."
De Grandhomme was acknowledging the efforts of Ross Taylor and Henry Nicholls, who struck half-centuries to lift the team to 272. Another key contributor was debutant Tom Blundell, who was unbeaten on 57 at stumps after adding 148 with de Grandhomme for the seventh wicket.
"He was very calm, confident and chill and he made it a lot easier out there for me too," de Grandhomme acknowledged.
The only disappointment for de Grandhomme, who broke Gilbert Jessop's record that had stood for over a hundred years, was that he fell without fully capitalizing the chance to gain an even bigger advantage.
"Disappointed at not getting through to the end of the day, probably really breaking them [West Indies] down and making them come back tomorrow."
Blundell played the supporting act in a 148-run, seventh-wicket partnership. He left confidently early in the innings, and gradually showed off his range. He used his feet well, milking the spinners on both sides of the wicket, and used cross-batted strokes, the late cut in particular, against the quicks. He finished with an unbeaten 57 off 100 balls.
Taylor and Nicholls had earlier shared a 127-run diligent stand that left West Indies with insufficient resources to counter the lower order. Over the last year across formats, Taylor has often consumed too many deliveries to kick his innings into gear. On the first evening in Wellington, he had made 12 off 32 after weathering a testing spell, but in favourable batting conditions on the second day, Taylor's positive intent was evident from the outset. He struck a 160-ball 93 to put New Zealand in control.
When Taylor defended, he did with soft hands, looking for singles either side of the wicket. When West Indies' seamers offered width, he slashed behind point and drove through cover. Sunny overhead conditions offering no lateral movement aided his strokeplay.
When West Indies switched to using the short ball as a tactic, just like New Zealand had done on the first day, Taylor took on the pull, albeit with middling success. He scored 20 runs through third man, 19 through cover and 13 behind square on the leg side, those three areas producing 79% of his runs before lunch.
Attempting to stem the copious flow of runs, West Indies set defensive fields with the new ball on the horizon. Taylor then tucked, nudged and pushed his way towards a hundred in an insipid period.
The game kicked back to life when West Indies took the new ball in the 82nd over. Kemar Roach, from wide of the crease, jagged one away late from a leaden-footed Taylor. The set-up, check. Off the first ball of his next over, Roach got one to seam back in to beat Taylor's inside edge and strike him plumb in front of off. The wicket, check. Taylor fell seven runs short of his fourth successive ton at home against West Indies.
Nicholls, a naturally attacking player, found his fluency immediately at the other end. He opened his account with a flick behind square for four off his first delivery. He did leave well through his innings, waiting for West Indies to stray into his pads to accumulate his runs. In the first over after lunch, he gloved a pull off Jason Holder to the keeper, but replays showed the bowler had overstepped. Nicholls only grew more patient thereafter.
Roach produced West Indies' only wicket of the morning session with an unplayable delivery. Bowling from around the wicket in the 48th over, he got one to pitch outside leg and jag away prodigiously off the seam. On 42, Raval, prodding from the crease, didn't account for as much movement and edged behind. An inch shorter and the ball would have beaten the edge. An inch fuller and Raval would have got behind the line.
The bowlers lacked the discipline, conceding 12 no-balls, and giving New Zealand several boundary-hitting options. All it did was gradually erode their chances in the Test.
Day 3
West Indies 134 and 214 for 2 trail New Zealand 520 for 9 dec. by 172 runs
New Zealand hurtled to a profoundly commanding position in the first seven sessions of the Wellington Test, but the opposition began to resist on the third day. West Indies were still a long way back - 172 in arrears with two second-innings wickets already spent. But thanks to Kraigg Brathwaite's fortitude, a spark from Kieran Powell, and a little flash from Shimron Hetmyer, their hopes of making something out of this match are not yet extinguished. Brathwaite remained at the crease on 79, with Shai Hope for company.
But perhaps this was always going to be a batting day - the Basin Reserve pitch tends to flatten dramatically as matches wear on. In the morning, Tom Blundell had progressed from an overnight 57 not out to triple figures, becoming the first wicketkeeper-batsman to make a debut Test century since Matt Prior in 2007.
What was remarkable was that he scored 52 of his eventual 107 not out in the company of Trent Boult - the pair putting on an unbeaten stand of 78 for the last wicket. Soon after Blundell reached his century, New Zealand declared on 520 for 9, taking a 386-run advantage into the second innings.
Few might have expected West Indies to claim momentum as dramatically as they did after lunch, however. If one aspect of play epitomised the vigour they brought to those sessions, it was their bristling confidence when facing their tormentor from the first dig: Neil Wagner. On day one, Wagner had collected 7 for 39 in 14 overs, as batsmen almost raced each other back to the pavilion.
On Sunday, Wagner again deployed his familiar lifters from around the wicket, but suddenly, the West Indies top order was almost disdainful of the tactic, pulling, hacking, and cracking him through the leg side throughout the afternoon and evening sessions. Wagner was left nursing figures of 0 for 89 from 15 overs by stumps, having suffered 14 fours and two sixes. Unable himself to make a breakthrough, Trent Boult was also visibly frustrated by the closing stages of the day.
That it is around their senior opener that West Indies' resistance built was unsurprising. Brathwaite did as Brathwaite does, leaving judiciously, defending solidly, and awaiting the bad balls to dispatch to the fence. His two early boundaries were the result of wayward leg-side deliveries that he simply nudged fine. He was a little more ambitious in the evening session, even running at Mitchell Santner to launch him over the deep midwicket boundary.
His patience and assuredness at the start of the innings allowed Powell to take risks at the other end. It was Powell who began the assault on Wagner by hitting two sixes and a four off consecutive Wagner balls. Having survived a close lbw shout off Boult early in his innings - a not-out decision that would have been overturned had New Zealand reviewed - Powell went on to make 40 off 55 balls before losing concentration and giving Matt Henry a simple return catch.
Hetmyer's 66 was sprightly and attractive, as he and Brathwaite combined for a second-wicket stand worth 94. Having been reprieved via a batting review on seven, Hetmyer took to playing Wagner with particular aplomb, driving and pulling imperiously. He didn't always keep his shots on the ground, but found empty space whenever he went aerial, once lofting Boult for a straight six with sublime timing. That Boult over, the 42nd of the innings, also featured two Hetmyer fours: down the ground, and over midwicket.
Like for Powell, it was a misjudgement of Henry's pace that brought his wicket, after the tea break. Attempting to turn Henry towards the leg side, Hetmyer succeeded only in sending a leading edge to extra cover.
Hope and Brathwaite ensured there were no further wickets before the end of the day by showing a little reticence as stumps drew near, but the bad balls were still punished. All up, day three saw 287 runs scored for the fall of just two wickets. New Zealand will hope to get early breakthroughs on day four, to ensure the match does not progress to a fifth day, but if West Indies bat as they have so far in the innings, victory will have to be hard-won, for New Zealand.
Day 4
West Indies 134 & 319
New Zealand 520/9d
New Zealand won by an innings and 67 runs
The defiance that West Indies had found on day three wilted, their wickets fell in a heap for the second time in the Test, and New Zealand sped to an innings-and-67-run victory - the hosts' quicks having wiped the opposition out with the second new ball. Following the top-order partnerships West Indies had mounted on Sunday, it was the rate of their demise on Monday that was dispiriting. They added only 105 to the overnight score, and lost their last seven wickets for 62 runs, in the space of 20 overs.
The New Zealand quicks shared the wickets around, as the opposition perished to a series of poor strokes. Matt Henry added the wicket of Roston Chase to the two dismissals he had effected on day three, to finish with figures of 3 for 57. Trent Boult, Neil Wagner and Colin de Grandhomme claimed two wickets apiece meanwhile - Wagner's wickets particularly significant, after he had been clobbered by the top order on Sunday.
This result means that New Zealand go to the second Test without having been stretched at Wellington. Although there were difficult moments in the field, particularly while Shimron Hetmyer and Kraigg Brathwaite batted together on the third evening, no bowler was required to deliver more than 45 overs in the Test, and at no point did West Indies muster a century stand.
It was the wicket of innings top-scorer Brathwaite - the only dismissal that went to a spinner in this innings - that set West Indies' slide into motion. Having begun the day on 79, Brathwaite had progressed without incident into the 90s, as New Zealand rested their frontline quicks so they might be deployed only after the second new ball became available. Even before the 80th over rolled around, however, Brathwaite lost his wicket. Having nudged a legside Mitchell Santner delivery to the fine leg boundary, he misjudged the pace of the very next Santner delivery, and it brushed his back pad before it hit his bat. The ensuing lbw appeal was turned down on the field, but the batsman was given out upon review. Only 17 runs had been added to the overnight score at that stage.
Then, from the 86th over, came the rapid collapse. Shai Hope, whose innings had been defined by its reticence, was dismissed playing a defensive shot - a Boult lifter finding his outside edge, then Kane Williamson's hands in the gully. Roston Chase, who had hit Boult for consecutive boundaries to get his innings under way, did not last long following Hope's exit, inside-edging a wide Henry ball on to his stumps.
West Indies went to lunch with five wickets remaining, but New Zealand needed less than an hour after resumption to close the game out. Debutant Sunil Ambris edged de Grandhomme to wide slip, first ball after the break. Then, next over, Shane Dowrich slashed Wagner to point - it was the first ball Dowrich had faced in the session. The tail was in no mood to resist. Kemar Roach, Jason Holder and Miguel Cummins were all out in the space of 28 balls.
What was particularly disappointing for the West Indies was that the pitch had long since begun to favour batsman, and though the second new ball offered the New Zealand seamers bounce and carry, there was no dramatic movement. The only positive for the visitors, apart from some decent top-order scores, is that they now have an extra day of preparation for the Hamilton Test, which begins on Saturday.
2nd Test
Day 1
New Zealand 286/7 (87 ov)
West Indies
A measured 84 from Jeet Raval, and a Colin de Grandhomme blitz bookended New Zealand's day, but it was West Indies' quicks who made the best of it, starting off slowly, then working themselves into a fine rhythm by stumps. The hosts are still nicely placed, at 286 for 7, with the pitch expected to get quicker on days two and three. However, in breaking through to the tail with the second new ball, West Indies have given themselves a chance in this match - which is more than what could have been said at a similar stage of the game in Wellington.
It was Shannon Gabriel who, having leaked boundaries with the first new ball, inflicted important blows with the second, dismissing de Grandhomme and Mitchell Santner after the pair had put on 76 for the sixth wicket.
He had also claimed the wicket of Raval during West Indies' resurgent period in the middle of the day. New Zealand had had 154 runs for the loss of just one wicket, before Gabriel, Kemar Roach, Miguel Cummins and Raymon Reifer combined to claim four wickets either side of the tea break. Where Gabriel bowled both good spells and poor ones through the course of the day, Cummins, Roach and debutant left-armer Reifer were much more consistent, delivering tight lines and muzzling New Zealand's batsmen when they threatened to attack. Between the three of them, they claimed four wickets and conceded only 118 runs from 53 combined overs.
That West Indies ended in a creditable position is testament to the attack's fortitude, for their day had not begun well. Gabriel was driven for two boundaries by Raval in the first over, and had been guilty of pitching too full -perhaps in search of swing or seam movement, which did not eventuate. Raval was assured through that first session, pulling with authority and rotating the strike with ease, as he had Tom Latham built an opening partnership of 65. The scoring did slow down soon after lunch, however. Kane Williamson, who replaced Latham at the crease after the opener had gloved a pull shot off Cummins, was left scoreless for the first 17 balls he faced in the second session, 12 of which were delivered by Reifer. That period of tight bowling from West Indies helped produce the wickets that came later in the session - Williamson caught behind down the leg side off Cummins, before Gabriel drew an outside edge from Raval with a length ball that seamed across the batsman.
When, soon after tea, Roach and Reifer also struck in quick succession to remove Ross Taylor and Henry Nicholls, New Zealand had lost four wickets for 45 runs, and were reduced to 189 for 5.
It was at this stage that de Grandhomme reclaimed some ground for his side. Having taken 11 balls to make his first run, and having perhaps been dropped by the wicketkeeper off the offspin of Roston Chase for 8, de Grandhomme walloped 42 runs - including three sixes and a four off chase - off 25 balls, to register a half-century. He used Seddon Park's small boundaries to his advantage, as even some good deliveries were muscled to the fence. He had threatened to reassert New Zealand's control over the match when West Indies took the second new ball, and Gabriel struck immediately. Mitchell Santner lost his off stump to a ball that pitched on leg and nipped slightly back, beating his booming drive. De Grandhomme was himself dismissed in similar fashion, though for him the ball seamed in the other direction.
Tom Blundell, New Zealand's debutant centurion from the last match, remained not out alongside Neil Wagner at stumps.
Though West Indies will be pleased with the manner in which they closed out the day, there will be some consternation about their over rate. They were three overs short of the target of 90, even though the extra half-hour was used. That regular captain Jason Holder is suspended for this match is of course down to West Indies having been too slow to complete their overs in the first Test. This time, it is stand-in captain Kraigg Brathwaite who is at risk of being penalised.
Day 2
New Zealand 373
West Indies 215/8 (64 ov)
West Indies trail by 158 runs with 2 wickets remaining in the 1st innings
Trent Boult and Tim Southee pillaged 61 runs together at the start of the day, then claimed two wickets apiece, and held one spectacular catch each, as they set off and then perpetuated West Indies' dramatic decline on a rain-interrupted day.
By stumps, New Zealand had a stranglehold on the Test. Their opposition, eight down, and still 158 runs short of the hosts' 373, were facing a long climb back into contention. Only Kraigg Brathwaite made a substantial score, hitting 66 off 116 deliveries while several batsmen made promising starts and perished around him. Having ended the first day with so much momentum, and even begun day two with a wicket in the first over, West Indies were guilty of failing to apply themselves on a pitch that - while lively - was not the challenge their scoreline made it seem.
It was in the eighth over of the day, with New Zealand's score on 312 for 9, that Tim and Trent's day-two adventure began. Getting off the mark with an enterprising uppercut for four over the slips off Shannon Gabriel, Boult tried the shot again next over, and this time fetched six for it. Before long he and Southee were in the middle of a full-scale blitz, Boult hitting five fours and two sixes in his 27-ball 37 not out, while Southee cracked 31 off 39, hitting two leg-side sixes and a four of his own. They were aided by Seddon Park's modest dimensions, as even mis-hits proved a challenge to West Indies' fielders. But there was spunk to go with the luck - Boult backing off awkwardly against Miguel Cummins at one stage, only to reach out and blast past point a ball that might have shaved the top of off stump.
New Zealand had begun the day in danger of not making it to 300, but thanks largely to their No. 10 and No. 11, 87 runs were added to the overnight score. Kemar Roach, who dismissed Neil Wagner third ball of the day (thanks to a flying catch at gully by Shai Hope) claimed the final wicket to finish with figures of 3 for 58, while Gabriel, who also took a day-two wicket, ended with 4 for 119.
It was in the field, and with the ball, however, that Boult and Southee really left their mark on this Test. Gaining more bounce and carry from the surface than West Indies had managed (though it is possible the pitch had quickened up), they began beating edges almost immediately. Southee took the wicket of Kieran Powell in the first over, having the batsman caught behind for zero. Boult took longer to make his breakthrough, dismissing the spirited Shimron Hetmyer with a sublime return catch, leaping to his left.
Having tottered to 46 for 2, West Indies then seemed to be regaining their composure while Brathwaite and Hope were at the crease, but when play resumed after a rain delay of almost two hours, more wickets were in store. Hope nicked one to the slips off Southee soon after play re-started, then Roston Chase and Sunil Ambris both departed in quick succession - the latter treading on his stumps to the bowling of Boult, as he played a back-foot shot on the leg side. This was the second time in three innings that Ambris was out hit wicket.
When Southee caught Brathwaite spectacularly on the juggle soon after - the ball hitting the tips of his outstretch hands at short cover, only to bounce out and then be re-taken just before it hit the turf behind him - West Indies had lost four wickets for 45 runs. Brathwaite had been the player holding the innings together, keeping out the good balls and finding boundaries behind the wicket - though he did have some luck when he was dropped off Boult in the slips, on 14. He left West Indies at 135 for 6 - in danger of not making 200. Thankfully, for the visitors, Shane Dowrich struck a belligerent 35 before top-edging a pull off Neil Wagner, and debutant Raymon Reifer moved to an unbeaten 22 by stumps.
Southee returned New Zealand's best figures of the day, his two wickets only costing him 34 runs. Colin de Grandhomme and Wagner also had two wickets to their name. Mitchell Santner's left-arm spin was not required.
Day 3
New Zealand 373 & 291/8d
West Indies 221 & 30/2 (8 ov, target: 444)
West Indies require another 414 runs with 8 wickets remaining
New Zealand's stranglehold on the Hamilton Test grew tighter on day three, as they piled on the runs to set West Indies 444 to chase, and claimed two wickets before stumps to begin the victory push.
Ross Taylor's 107 not out was instrumental to strengthening New Zealand's position - the hundred taking him equal with Kane Williamson and Martin Crowe, who hold the New Zealand record, with 17 Test centuries. Williamson himself struck a lively fifty to steady the innings after West Indies had struck early blows, and Trent Boult was impressive again with the ball, taking wickets off successive deliveries in the morning, before making the first incision of the fourth innings as the day waned.
It was not as if West Indies were substantially outperformed on the day - just that they had ceded so much ground already that they required a near-miraculous effort to reimpose themselves on the match. Their quicks were good in patches - Miguel Cummins and Shannon Gabriel running hot at various points through the day. In one especially hostile spell, Cummins bowled Williamson with a searing yorker from outside the off stump, had Henry Nicholls nicking off to a well-directed short ball, and would also have had the wicket of Mitchell Santner had wicketkeeper Shane Dowrich managed to hold a difficult overhead chance off Santner's top edge.
Gabriel, meanwhile, prospered with fast length balls aimed at the stumps. He claimed two wickets, one of which was an lbw of Colin de Grandhomme - a decision that was overturned in New Zealand's favour only after a confused third-umpire's review.
Taylor's, meanwhile, was an innings of moderation. Sixty balls he took to hit his first boundary, having kept out some excellent deliveries from Cummins and Gabriel in that time. At no stage during his knock was he hurried; he was content usually to push the ball into gaps, keeping that brutal cut and those bludgeoned drives in check. Of his first fifty runs, 38 came from singles and twos. The only bowler who troubled him consistently was Gabriel, who beat him for pace repeatedly, and had even drawn and outside edge when Taylor was on 35, only for the gully fielder to grass the low chance.
After tea, Taylor's pace quickened - the singles coming more frequently than before, and Cummins even suffering two disdainful pulls for four in front of square. Having got out on 93 at the Basin Reserve, Taylor didn't dally long in the nineties, taking only nine deliveries to move to triple figures. In addition to having equaled the New Zealand record, this is a special ton for Taylor: his longtime friend and mentor Martin Crowe had said Taylor would reach and surpass his own tally of 17 centuries.
Earlier, West Indies had had a brief opportunity to spark a New Zealand collapse, when they dismissed the openers with 42 on the board, but Williamson's energetic innings sucked the worst of the venom out of their bowling. Having arrived at 11 for 1, Williamson began to leave the ball judiciously, and defend with assurance. He batted out 26 balls before the expansive strokes began to appear. His two first boundaries were made possible by fielding errors at point and deep square leg, but then the 33 balls he faced before lunch yielded 42 runs. His fifty was brought up via a leg glance to the fine leg boundary immediately after he had socked Shannon Gabriel past mid-off. It was an important score for Williamson, for he had gone five international innings without a fifty - a significant stretch for such a consistent batsman.
Elsewhere in the New Zealand innings, batsmen got starts and were undone when more substantial scores beckoned. Tom Latham, Mitchell Santner and Colin de Grandhomme all made it past 20 before being dismissed, generally by very good West Indies bowling. None of the dismissals seemed to dent New Zealand much, so secure were they already in the game. When Williamson declared, New Zealand had made 291 for 8 in the second dig.
As had been the case at the Basin Reserve, West Indies' first-innings indiscretions meant that they began the second innings with only a miniscule chance of avoiding defeat. That chance would become worse before stumps. Kieran Powell was out for his second duck of the match - squared up by a short delivery from Boult that took his edge and flew low to third slip. Shimron Hetmyer sparkled briefly again, playing a dismissive pull and a searing on-drive for four, but he was out cheaply again, just lofting a full Tim Southee delivery into the hands of mid-off.
West Indies must take heart from their successful pursuit of 322 at Headingley earlier this year. The target in front of them now, however, will take even more grit and resilience - the likes of which they are yet to show for an extended period, on this tour.
Day 4
New Zealand 373 & 291/8d
West Indies 221 & 203 (target: 444)
New Zealand won by 240 runs
Trent Boult and Tim Southee shot out the top order, Neil Wagner bruised the batsmen in the middle, and Mitchell Santner cleaned up the tail, as New Zealand cruised to a 240-run victory at Seddon Park. West Indies' second innings featured only one brave stand - a 78-run association for the sixth wicket between Roston Chase and Raymon Riefer. Only on the first day of this Test can the visitors be said to have been in the hunt for victory. Avoiding defeat was always going to be difficult after giving up a first-innings lead of 152, but West Indies would perhaps be disappointed with the speed of their demise.
New Zealand, meanwhile, made a strong start to their home summer, as their quicks bowled themselves into a rhythm, and key batsmen ran into form. The only downside for the hosts is that having played no Tests since March, they now have no long-format matches scheduled until March next year.
Neil Wagner is ecstatic as he sends back Shane Dowrich for a golden duck Getty Images
It was Wagner and his hostility that made the greatest impression on the final day, and set New Zealand on track for a day-four finish. Combative and intense as ever, and aided by a Seddon Park track receptive to his mode of operation, he sent a torrent of deliveries at the batsmen's ribs, and regularly threatened their throats, clearly taking pleasure in their discomfort. The bodyline barrage began in his first over of the day. Immediately after being cover-driven for four by Shai Hope, he struck the batsman flush on an unprotected forearm. The follow up: another bouncer - up near the neck this time. Hope could not control his hook, which finished up in the hands of long leg.
In his next two overs, Wagner claimed two more victims. He got a ball to rear up off a back-of-a-length and struck Sunil Ambris painfully on the forearm - a blow that required the attention of a physiotherapist, and would turn out to have caused a fracture. Ambris initially stayed in the middle after receiving the blow, but one more ball from Wagner in the following over - this one at the ribs - was enough to convince him to head for the safety of the dressing room. He did not return to bat.
West Indies fined for slow over rate
The West Indies players were fined 20% of their match fee, and stand-in captain Kraigg Brathwaite 40% of his, after the team was deemed to be two overs short its target in Hamilton. As per ICC regulations, the team is fined 10% of their match fee for each over they fall short, and the captain is fined twice that.
Brathwaite was already standing in as captain due to Jason Holder being suspended for previous over-rate offences - two minor over-rate offences in a Test within 12 months results in the captain being suspended.
Shane Dowrich, the man who replaced Ambris at the crease, was one of the few West Indies batsmen to avoid being struck by Wagner, but that is because he only lasted two balls. In fending off a another uncomfortable rib-high delivery, Dowrich sent a sharp catch to short leg, who claimed the chance to his right. Having also struck Chase on the upper body, Wagner would be the man to break that sixth-wicket partnership, prompting another mis-hit hook, which was again gobbled up by an advancing long leg.
While Wagner had his victims caught on the legside, Boult and Southee went the more conventional route: having them caught behind the wicket on the offside. Kraigg Brathwaite was the first batsman to be dismissed on Tuesday, slapping a Boult delivery to Williamson, who took the sharp chance at head height. Williamson would see more action in that position later on. Riefer, who ground his way to a 109-ball 29 - sent a low catch in that direction, and Williamson made an incredibly difficult chance seem simple, taking the catch at shin height with his left hand.
Chase was positive through the course of his 64 off 98 balls, but it was his ability to resist hooking Wagner that allowed him to survive so long. He scored his runs through the offside instead - particularly backward of point. When he was dismissed, New Zealand were on the home stretch. Kemar Roach opened his shoulders during a 44-ball 32, but Santner struck in successive deliveries to end that salvo, and the match.
Tuesday, 21 November 2017
3 T20s AUS 1-2 ENG (8-8 AUS retain Ashes)
multi-format Ashes 8-8 - Aus retain Ashes
Three T20s remain - each worth 2 points
1st T20
England Women 132/9 (20 ov)
Australia Women 134/4 (15.5/20 ov)
Australia Women won by 6 wickets (with 25 balls remaining)
Australia retained the Women's Ashes with an emphatic six-wicket victory over England in the first Twenty20 international in Sydney.
Victory gave the holders an 8-4 lead in the points-based series, meaning England can only draw 8-8 if they win the final two T20s.
England lost Heather Knight second ball and were 16-4, but Dani Wyatt's maiden fifty helped them to 132-9.
Beth Mooney hit 86 not as Australia raced home with 25 balls to spare.
Having won the 50-over World Cup in fine style at Lord's in July, England's preparations for the Ashes were hampered by the two warm-up matches being washed out and they found themselves 4-0 down in the series after losing the first two one-day internationals.
A draw in the one-off Test kept the series alive into the T20s, but there was a bizarre start at the North Sydney Oval after Australia chose to field.
Knight edged to wicketkeeper Alyssa Healy, who also took off the bails, but was temporarily reprieved as the umpires consulted, only to be sent to the pavilion again when the method of dismissal had been determined.
Key batter Sarah Taylor was adjudged lbw in the next over, with no review process in place to question whether the ball might have gone over or missed leg stump.
Ellyse Perry, international footballer and double centurion in the Test, was on a hat-trick in the fifth over after two more catches from Healy, with one outstanding effort millimetres from the turf at full stretch.
But Wyatt gave the innings much-needed impetus with some clean hitting down the ground.
However, the 26-year-old was halfway down the wicket when sent back by Fran Wilson in the 16th over and could not regain her ground.
England mustered a further 32 runs after her dismissal, but Mooney set the tone for Australia's chase with a four and a six in an opening over from Katherine Brunt that cost 14.
Wyatt gave England a glimmer of hope when she raced around the mid-wicket boundary to pouch Healy's hook in the fifth over.
But Mooney continued to dominate with a second six off Brunt and the fluent left-hander made the highest score by an Australian on home soil in women's T20 matches, striking the winning runs in style with her 11th four.
The series concludes with two T20s at the Manuka Oval in Canberra, on Sunday at 03:35 GMT and Tuesday 21 November at 08:10.
'We were always playing catch-up' - what they said
England captain Heather Knight: "We were always playing catch-up. I am really proud of Dani Wyatt and how she fought to get us back in the game.
"Credit to Australia. Beth Mooney played an outstanding innings and took the game away. Everything we tried we couldn't get her out."
Australia skipper Rachael Haynes: "It was so nice for the team to come out and play like that. We started well with the ball but fell away. For Beth Mooney to come out and make a statement like that was fantastic.
"I couldn't watch. I was pretty nervous, the most nervous I have been watching cricket. There was a lot composure in the middle and Mooney took control of that."
Former England seamer Isa Guha on BBC 5 live sports extra: "Australia have won the big moments - that's something England haven't been able to capitalise on when they've been on top."
2nd T20 (07:30 GMT, SUN)
England 152 for 6 beat Australia 112 by 40 runs
The Ashes may have been lost but England gave themselves a chance of salvaging a Twenty20 series victory with a comprehensive defeat of Australia in the second match at Manuka Oval in Canberra, driven largely by the efforts of Nat Sciver, Katherine Brunt and Jenny Gunn.
Australia's power in the shortest format had been emphasised by Beth Mooney's innings in their thrashing of the visitors in the first T20 at North Sydney Oval, the result that ensured they would retain the urn. But England's busy approach with the bat was followed up by a sharp display in the field, which absorbed a swift opening by Mooney and Alyssa Healy then ushered the collapse of the rest.
Brunt's allround display was outstanding, adding 2 for 10 from four immaculate overs to an unbeaten 32 that featured a pair of sixes. But she had plenty of assistance, notably in the form of Sciver's top order contribution, and Gunn's persistent line and changes of pace that gave her four wickets. Sarah Taylor, too, was useful with the bat and then typically polished behind the stumps.
Batting first in the Sunday afternoon fixture, England looked to be stuttering slightly when Dannelle Wyatt and Tammy Beaumont were both out inside the first seven overs while scoring at little more than six an over. However Sciver and Taylor were able to not only form a partnership but also advance the scoring rate in a manner that put pressure back on Australia's bowlers.
After the captain Heather Knight could stay in the middle only briefly, it was Brunt who dominated the closing overs, combining plenty of hustle between the wickets with the occasional meaty blow. Megan Schutt returned to claim a second wicket in the final over, finishing wiht excellent analysis of 2 for 16 to maintain her outstanding series, but England were comfortably able to pass the 150 mark.
Mooney and Healy began as though they intended to make short work of the target, rattling along to 45 inside six overs before a run out turned the game. Mooney chanced a quick single to mid off, but Gunn was able to aim and throw with pinpoint accuracy to hit the stumps and send the left-hander on her way.
Next over Elyse Villani was brilliantly stumped by Taylor off Brunt, and when Healy failed to clear long on the Australians were in free-fall. Ellyse Perry's innings was ended by a drag onto the stumps, and from there it was more or less a case of mopping up operations for England's bowlers, a task completed with two overs to spare.
The final match of the series takes place at Manuka under lights on Tuesday.
3rd T20
Three T20s remain - each worth 2 points
1st T20
England Women 132/9 (20 ov)
Australia Women 134/4 (15.5/20 ov)
Australia Women won by 6 wickets (with 25 balls remaining)
Australia retained the Women's Ashes with an emphatic six-wicket victory over England in the first Twenty20 international in Sydney.
Victory gave the holders an 8-4 lead in the points-based series, meaning England can only draw 8-8 if they win the final two T20s.
England lost Heather Knight second ball and were 16-4, but Dani Wyatt's maiden fifty helped them to 132-9.
Beth Mooney hit 86 not as Australia raced home with 25 balls to spare.
Having won the 50-over World Cup in fine style at Lord's in July, England's preparations for the Ashes were hampered by the two warm-up matches being washed out and they found themselves 4-0 down in the series after losing the first two one-day internationals.
A draw in the one-off Test kept the series alive into the T20s, but there was a bizarre start at the North Sydney Oval after Australia chose to field.
Knight edged to wicketkeeper Alyssa Healy, who also took off the bails, but was temporarily reprieved as the umpires consulted, only to be sent to the pavilion again when the method of dismissal had been determined.
Key batter Sarah Taylor was adjudged lbw in the next over, with no review process in place to question whether the ball might have gone over or missed leg stump.
Ellyse Perry, international footballer and double centurion in the Test, was on a hat-trick in the fifth over after two more catches from Healy, with one outstanding effort millimetres from the turf at full stretch.
But Wyatt gave the innings much-needed impetus with some clean hitting down the ground.
However, the 26-year-old was halfway down the wicket when sent back by Fran Wilson in the 16th over and could not regain her ground.
England mustered a further 32 runs after her dismissal, but Mooney set the tone for Australia's chase with a four and a six in an opening over from Katherine Brunt that cost 14.
Wyatt gave England a glimmer of hope when she raced around the mid-wicket boundary to pouch Healy's hook in the fifth over.
But Mooney continued to dominate with a second six off Brunt and the fluent left-hander made the highest score by an Australian on home soil in women's T20 matches, striking the winning runs in style with her 11th four.
The series concludes with two T20s at the Manuka Oval in Canberra, on Sunday at 03:35 GMT and Tuesday 21 November at 08:10.
'We were always playing catch-up' - what they said
England captain Heather Knight: "We were always playing catch-up. I am really proud of Dani Wyatt and how she fought to get us back in the game.
"Credit to Australia. Beth Mooney played an outstanding innings and took the game away. Everything we tried we couldn't get her out."
Australia skipper Rachael Haynes: "It was so nice for the team to come out and play like that. We started well with the ball but fell away. For Beth Mooney to come out and make a statement like that was fantastic.
"I couldn't watch. I was pretty nervous, the most nervous I have been watching cricket. There was a lot composure in the middle and Mooney took control of that."
Former England seamer Isa Guha on BBC 5 live sports extra: "Australia have won the big moments - that's something England haven't been able to capitalise on when they've been on top."
2nd T20 (07:30 GMT, SUN)
England 152 for 6 beat Australia 112 by 40 runs
The Ashes may have been lost but England gave themselves a chance of salvaging a Twenty20 series victory with a comprehensive defeat of Australia in the second match at Manuka Oval in Canberra, driven largely by the efforts of Nat Sciver, Katherine Brunt and Jenny Gunn.
Australia's power in the shortest format had been emphasised by Beth Mooney's innings in their thrashing of the visitors in the first T20 at North Sydney Oval, the result that ensured they would retain the urn. But England's busy approach with the bat was followed up by a sharp display in the field, which absorbed a swift opening by Mooney and Alyssa Healy then ushered the collapse of the rest.
Brunt's allround display was outstanding, adding 2 for 10 from four immaculate overs to an unbeaten 32 that featured a pair of sixes. But she had plenty of assistance, notably in the form of Sciver's top order contribution, and Gunn's persistent line and changes of pace that gave her four wickets. Sarah Taylor, too, was useful with the bat and then typically polished behind the stumps.
Batting first in the Sunday afternoon fixture, England looked to be stuttering slightly when Dannelle Wyatt and Tammy Beaumont were both out inside the first seven overs while scoring at little more than six an over. However Sciver and Taylor were able to not only form a partnership but also advance the scoring rate in a manner that put pressure back on Australia's bowlers.
After the captain Heather Knight could stay in the middle only briefly, it was Brunt who dominated the closing overs, combining plenty of hustle between the wickets with the occasional meaty blow. Megan Schutt returned to claim a second wicket in the final over, finishing wiht excellent analysis of 2 for 16 to maintain her outstanding series, but England were comfortably able to pass the 150 mark.
Mooney and Healy began as though they intended to make short work of the target, rattling along to 45 inside six overs before a run out turned the game. Mooney chanced a quick single to mid off, but Gunn was able to aim and throw with pinpoint accuracy to hit the stumps and send the left-hander on her way.
Next over Elyse Villani was brilliantly stumped by Taylor off Brunt, and when Healy failed to clear long on the Australians were in free-fall. Ellyse Perry's innings was ended by a drag onto the stumps, and from there it was more or less a case of mopping up operations for England's bowlers, a task completed with two overs to spare.
The final match of the series takes place at Manuka under lights on Tuesday.
3rd T20
Through the most daring of hands, Danni Wyatt steered England to the least likely of wins, the visitors ending their Ashes campaign by knocking off the highest successful run chase in the history of women’s Twenty20 internationals. In turn, Heather Knight’s side head home having levelled the overall series at 8-8 after winning the last two rubbers.
When England lost three wickets in five overs to begin their response to 178 for two they looked to have given up any realistic chance. The game had a familiar look: the required run rate would rocket as wickets fell. It had all the symptoms of a shocker to never be spoken of again, save for Beth Mooney’s relentless century earlier on.
That almost certainly would have come to pass if not for Australia’s incompetence, dropping Wyatt and Knight four times in total. Awful, inexplicable drops. But batting with the liberty of the reprieved, the pair instead went on to mount an exhilarating and match-winning 139-run partnership in only 75 balls. In the space of an hour, a stinker became a classic.
For Wyatt’s part it was her maiden international hundred, coming only four days after her first half-century for England. It was raised in 56 balls and on 13 occasions the Staffordshire native went through the Australia field, and twice cleared the rope. Footwork and placement defined the knock, which only got better as the chase got deeper. She was fearless in the middle then in shock after play. “It’s a bit surreal,” she said. “I still can’t believe what’s happened. I was just focused on the ball really. I kept telling myself: ‘Focus.’ Then I looked at the board and I was 95. I was, like, ‘Trev [Knight], what’s going on?
Knight was perfect in support, getting Wyatt on strike as often as possible before working up the gears herself, the two getting the ask down to a run a ball with four overs to go. The captain’s half-century was enough to also win her the player of the series award. “It was a really special night,” she said. “I knew the girls would fight hard, we just needed someone to go big and Danni did exactly that. I was perfectly happy to play second fiddle to her, and the way she was striking it. Some of the shots, I had to pick my jaw up off the floor. I thought they had too many [runs] but there is a hell of a lot of fight in this team and to level at 8-8 makes me really proud.”
It never looked viable when Mooney played the most superlative white-ball innings of the series. The 117 unbeaten runs she tallied in 70 balls were faultless and sit second on the list of highest scores made by a woman in the shortest form. By any measure, she deserved to be on the winning team.
Her 17 boundaries and one six tell one story, but this was no slog. Rather, it was a far more precise exercise from the left-hander. After lacing the first delivery of the night past point, Mooney went on to scoop, sweep and pull every ball directed at her body with impeccable balance.
When driving, she did so both conventionally and inside-out with equal ease and ample footwork. Four boundaries from the final four balls, delivered by Anya Shrubsole, emphasised her mastery.
But somehow, on this night, it would not be enough. If looking to apportion blame, the opener need look no further than Alyssa Healy. The wicketkeeper, who has had a fine series with the bat and gloves, dropped both Wyatt and Knight to the most straightforward skied chances. Megan Schutt and Molly Strano put down catches off Knight that were just as bad.
“The word bittersweet was used and that’s a pretty good description,” the Australia coach, Matthew Mott, said of his side winning the main but giving up the T20s so spectacularly.
“It’s just a shame for Beth, who played the innings of her life and just made such a great statement for the group. We can’t hide from the fact we dropped four catches and that freed them up to go pretty hard, and Danni Wyatt’s innings was absolutely outstanding.”
As for Mooney, she said she wasn’t sure “whether to laugh or cry” after the game.
Fair enough. But what she proved, Wyatt too, is that missing the ODI series was no handbrake on dominating the T20s. With a global tournament on the cards a year from now, both now know they can win games for their country.
Saturday, 18 November 2017
Ashes 2017/18: 4 day tour match: Cricket Aus XI v ENG
Day 1 report
Cricket Australia XI 9 for 249 (Short 51, Woakes 6-54) v England
Chris Woakes doesn't fit the classic image of a fast bowler.
While the newspapers in Australia are full of stories of his counterparts - brooding, menacing types persuaded to stare down the lens like it just took the last pringle - promising to unleash pace and destruction upon England, Woakes responded to another outstanding performance by saying "it was nice". And then, after a pause, "and pleasing".
Make a headline out of that: "It's nice," roared Woakes. "It's pleasing," bellowed Woakes. "I'm focusing on my processes," vowed Woakes.
But beneath the bluster, beneath the wearying propaganda that seems to preface Ashes series these days, Woakes is getting on with his job "very nicely" indeed. And while most of the media may be fixated on the damage the Australian fast bowlers are promising to inflict on England and the absence of Ben Stokes, the tourists' other fast-bowling allrounder is enjoying the opportunity to warm-up for a confrontation that could go a long way to defining his career. And the result of the series.
Woakes' performance is vital. If he can replicate his record in England - where he has 42 Test wickets at a cost of 24.28 apiece - he will have given England a potency that will support James Anderson and Stuart Broad and ensure they have a viable attack. If he cannot improve his overseas record - he has currently taken eight Test wickets outside England (and Wales) at a cost of 63.75 apiece - then too much will be required of England's opening bowlers and it is hard to see how they win.
The key would appear to be movement. If Woakes can persuade the Kookaburra ball (used here) to move laterally as he can the Duke's (used in England) then his other qualities - his control, his relative pace (upper 80s, you would think) and his bounce - will all be enhanced.
So the good news - from an England perspective - from this tour to date is that he is finding that movement and, as a result, proving a tough proposition. Even on these pudding pitches.
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Chris Woakes broke through CA XI's top order with quick wickets Getty Images
Woakes, for the second time in successive innings, produced a spell that effectively cut the opposition in half. This time it was four - the first four wickets to fall - for 15 in six overs. Later he returned to claim two more. It means he has, at present, claimed 12 first-class wickets on this tour at a cost of just 10.25 apiece. The opposition is about to get much tougher but the pace he is bowling and the movement he is generating are encouraging.
It may be tempting to read some diffidence into Woakes' softly-spoken manner. To imagine that he will recoil in the furnace of the Gabba.
Chris Woakes feels he is coming to the boil nicely ahead of the first Test in Brisbane.
Woakes claimed 6 for 54 on the first day of the match against a CA XI in Townsville and afterwards spoke of his delight at his own rhythm and his ability to move the Kookaburra ball.
"All the numbers are saying I'm getting close to getting cooked," Woakes said. "I'm pleased with where my body is at and getting overs in the legs is important. You don't want to go in to the Test series undercooked and I'm pleased with where I'm at.
"We got a bit of shape with the ball, which was nice. There has been a lot spoken about the Kookaburra ball not doing as much as the Duke's and generally it doesn't. The fact that we got a bit of movement today is pleasing and builds some confidence with this ball that we are not as used to.
"The most important thing today was that I was pleased with how it came out and my rhythm. Six wickets is pleasing but had I picked up one or two I would still have been pleased."
Tempting but wrong. Instead his quiet manner reflects a confidence in his own ability, which doesn't require the layer of bravado others see fit to use. He knows it is performances that matter, not rhetoric. And he knows, if he "nails his processes" he will end the tour in a "very nice, very pleasing" mood. What's that saying about empty vessels and loudest sounds? Talk doesn't take wickets.
It's been noticeable in Woakes' career to date that he has produced some of his most eye-catching performances when his side have been under pressure. How about that 11-wicket haul against Pakistan at Lord's? England lost. Or that unbeaten 95 in an ODI against Sri Lanka at Trent Bridge? He came in when England were 82 for 6 and chasing 287. Both times, the pressure brought the best out of him.
His wickets here generally came from deliveries on or around off-stump that either bounced or nibbled away. So once Nick Larkin and Josh Carder's fine opening stand (they put on 66 in 26 overs as England failed to fully utilise the first new ball) was ended with Larkin slashing to gully, Carder and Ryan Gibson were unfortunate enough to receive balls that demanded a stroke and nipped away just enough. Jason Sangha and Simon Milenko were beaten for pace by full deliveries while Harry Nielsen also pushed one to gully.
Broad's figures, in comparison, were modest. But he bowled fine generally and used this game for the warm-up that it is. He is, in the best sense of the word, something of a show-off. And performing amid the bucolic charm of Riverway Stadium - and a vocal crowd who were never far away from reminding him he remained wicketless for most of the day - was never likely to inspire him.
This is another slow pitch, too. Disappointingly slow. England opted to come here over other options (Drummoyne in Sydney and Hobart were mentioned) as the ground had a reputation for pace that was akin to that expected in Brisbane. Instead, they have something more akin to New Road. Mount Louisa, off in the distance, even did a passable impression of the Malvern Hills. For the third time in succession, they surface they have encountered has been markedly different to that expected in Brisbane.
The England camp are remaining tight-lipped on their view of the preparation they have been provided. But it will be no surprise if, the next time they are here for an Ashes series, they bring a battery of their own seamers (and perhaps hire their own training facility) to ensure they face more taxing bowling. The likes of Mark Footitt, Stuart Meaker, Olly Stone and Richard Gleeson could all have been employed - fitness permitting - to ensure England experienced some pace ahead of the Ashes.
Cricket Australia would have you believe this CA XI represents almost the best opposition available with the Shield in full swing. It's not entirely true, though. Ed Cowan, for example, says he would have loved to play this game but, having been offered the opportunity to appear only 48-hours ahead of the Adelaide match, could only promise his availability for the second game. Perhaps, with a bit of planning, the likes of Cameron White and Michael Klinger could have been included, too?
England experienced a few nervous moments during the day, though. The most serious came when Jonny Bairstow had to leave the field after hurting the middle finger of his left hand in scuffing a delivery off the bowling of Woakes that appeared to bounce just in front of him.
While Ben Foakes, who was permitted to take the gloves by the umpires despite not being named in the XI, is a more than capable deputy (and soon had a catch - perhaps the first 'caught Foakes, bowled Woakes' of many), the thought of losing Bairstow from England's middle-order is enough to keep Joe Root up at night. He will, therefore, have been hugely relieved to see Bairstow reclaim the gloves about 50 minutes later having been diagnosed with nothing more serious than a bruise.
The cordon remains a bit of a concern, though. While James Vince, so fallible in the slips during his first spell in the side, has taken to the gully position with some class - he held three sharp chances on the first day here, none of them easy - another two or three chances went begging in the region. The most straightforward went to Root, off Mason Crane, when Matthew Short had 36, while Bairstow - leaping in front of first slip - put down another (this time off Woakes) to reprieve Milenko. Another edge, again off Crane, went between Bairstow and Root, while Mark Stoneman dropped a tough chance - he did well to get a hand on it, really - when Short cut Crane on 25.
Short took advantage of his reprieves to record a stubborn half-century (51 from 122 balls with just two boundaries) and ensure the CA XI recovered from the loss of four wickets for 25 runs either side of lunch.
Craig Overton impressed, too. He has settled into this tour nicely and, with his height and ability to generate movement, has demanded respect from the batsmen. He has conceded almost exactly two an over in the first-class games on this tour so far and has given himself an outstanding chance of a Test debut in a week's time.
There was also good news off the pitch for England. James Anderson, who missed training on Tuesday due to illness, bowled in the nets, while Jake Ball returned to running for the first time since sustaining strained ankle ligaments in Adelaide, and later also enjoyed a gentle bowl.
Day 2
England XI 3 for 337 (Stoneman 111, Cook 70, Root 62*, Malan 57*) lead Cricket Australia XI 250 (Short 51, Woakes 6-57) by 87 runs
Townsville is, in many ways, a ferocious place.
Oh, it's pretty. It has a mountain range, a shoreline and beautiful forests. The shops and bars seem nice, too.
But the sun is brutal and the wind is fierce. It doesn't rain for years at a time - literally - and the land provides a home for snakes, wild dogs, scorpions and spiders so large it's hard to believe they're not ponies on the way to a fancy dress party. "Don't worry," the locals tell you. "The bigger they are the less poisonous they are." But these spiders can beat you to death. They can wait for you in a dark carpark, steal your wallet and demand protection money from local businesses.
But even though there's something that can burn, bite, poison or sting you just about every square inch, it's still preferable to be on land than in the water. Because if you find yourself in the water round here (lakes or sea, anyway; the shower is fine once you've checked for spiders) you're in real trouble. You'll be sharing with sharks, crocodiles and jelly-fish all of which will delight in killing you. Beaches in Queensland have been shut 50 times in recent weeks for one of the above and, at present in Townsville, there is a warning about a four metre croc (described as a "problem crocodile" as opposed to all those laidback easy-going ones) that is lurking close to shore.
The bats have rabies, the koalas have chlamydia and even the magpies - vast, pterodactyl-like creatures that threaten to carry you off in their talons - have been known to kill. "Ah, don't worry," a local said on Thursday. "The worst those spiders can do is paralyse you." It'll be a miracle if any of us get out alive.
But, for a few hours on Thursday, the middle at the Riverway Stadium looked like paradise. For batsmen, at least. The pitch was gentle, the bowling even more so and Alastair Cook and Mark Stoneman seized the opportunity with both hands.
Stoneman has looked fine all trip. He has passed 50 every time he has come to the crease and here became the first man on the tour to register a century. He gave one chance - Nick Larkin, at gully, put him down on 41 off Simon Milenko; Larkin, the one man with a first-class hundred in this CA side, sustained a fracture and will not feature in the rest of this match - but generally looked utterly in command. He doesn't hook - he tends to duck the bouncer - but he pulls nicely, cuts very well and has a lovely, fluid drive. There were many jokes about Australians never having heard of several of this England squad when they arrived: it seems safe to suggest they'll know the Stoneman name before he heads home.
Underlining England's mantra about going on to convert good starts in match-defining scores, Stoneman didn't even take off his helmet to acknowledge the applause when he reached three figures: a century can't be seen as a destination by England on this tour; it has to be a landmark on the way to a more distant goal. He was angry with himself - punching his bat in frustration - for scuffing a return catch to the legspinner Daniel Fallins shortly after tea.
Cook's innings might be more significant. With England's batting line-up lacking experience in these conditions - the likely top nine will, excluding him, have a combination of six Test caps in Australia between them - his knowledge of three previous tours provides reassurance. He has looked horribly out of form until this innings, but here looked comfortable and confident. From his very first delivery, when the ball thudded against the middle of his defensive bat, his movements were more certain, his judgement more precise.
He looked furious with himself for his dismissal - attempting to guide a cut behind point, he managed only an edge - and for missing out on a hundred, but this was a good step forward from him. He, and the England management, will sleep a little easier as a result.
The one nagging worry - and it nagged particularly hard as Dawid Malan and Joe Root settled in against unthreatening spin bowling in the final session - is that this surface and this opposition will bear little comparison to that anticipated in Brisbane. It's like preparing for an artic trek by buying yourself a cornetto. England may still be in for a shock in Brisbane.
Opinion is divided over whether this represents a desperately cynical ploy from Cricket Australia or simply reflects the shallowing depth of their playing reserves. If it is the latter, they have a significant problem lurking just below the surface. If it is the former, there might be a certain poetic justice if this tactic came back to bite Cricket Australia on the backside like one of those spiders that lurks under the toilet bowl round these parts (yes, nowhere is safe). While it is undeniably true that the standard of opposition - and the pace of surfaces - will increase sharply next week, it may be that England have had the opportunity to acclimatise, gain confidence and form ahead of the serious business ahead.
James Vince was the one man to fail to take advantage. Since the 82 he made to start the tour - a non-first-class innings that saw him dropped twice - he has fallen between 26 and 33 in his three subsequent innings. He has time to play the ball and is wonderfully easy on the eye, but there is a vulnerability that renders his selection at No. 3 quite a risk. While he was given not out here initially, the umpires consulted and it was eventually decided he had played one off his pad to short leg. He looked aghast at the decision. Or, perhaps, at having missed out. Batting in first-class cricket in Australia has rarely looked as comfortable.
Day 3
Cricket Australia XI 250 & 121-3: Gibson 49, Moeen 2-34, Crane 1-24
England 515: Stoneman 111, Malan 109, Root 83
England lead by 144 runs
England improved late on a mixed third day of their final Ashes warm-up match against a Cricket Australia XI in Townsville.
Although Dawid Malan converted his overnight 57 into a century, England at one stage lost five wickets for 38.
A last-wicket stand of 58 between Chris Woakes and Mason Crane took the tourists to 515 all out.
CA XI openers Daniel Carder and Ryan Gibson shared 80 but spinners Moeen Ali and Crane reduced the hosts to 121-3.
Joe Root's side are in firm control - they lead by 144 runs - and will probably complete a big win on Saturday's final day, but for long periods this was an unsatisfactory day with the first Test against Australia less than a week away.
As Australia named a surprising squad for the match at the Gabba, England's lower order wasted the opportunity of time at the crease and the pace bowlers then lacked penetration on an unresponsive pitch.
"It was a mixed day," assistant coach Paul Farbrace told BBC Sport. "We took our eye off the ball with the bat.
"We are in a good position but, in terms of preparation for next week, we have dipped below where we have been during the first two days, which is a shame."
Malan follows Stoneman's lead
Like Mark Stoneman on Thursday, Malan responded to calls from captain Root and coach Trevor Bayliss for England's batsmen to convert starts into big scores.
Resuming in partnership with Root with England 337-3, the left-hander played eye-catching cover drives and clips off the pads on the way to his 19th first-class century.
Root, who began the day on 62, looked set for a hundred of his own until he was brilliantly caught down the leg side by wicketkeeper Harry Neilsen off pace bowler Simon Milenko for 83.
Malan angled the off-spin of Matthew Short to third man to reach three figures, but his slow response to Moeen's call meant he failed to beat Daniel Carder's throw from short fine leg in the middle of the late-order collapse.
"For someone who is playing in this country for the first time, he has shown that the extra pace and bounce in the wickets suit his game," said Farbrace.
"He found it difficult in England this summer when the ball nipped around, but he looks very much at home here."
Late-order slump
Jonny Bairstow slapped a full toss from leg-spinner Daniel Fallins to mid-on to depart for 19, but he at least made an unbeaten 61 against the same opposition last week.
For Moeen and Craig Overton, who may be required to contribute runs from number nine if he makes his Test debut at the Gabba, chances of batting in the middle may now have run out.
Both fell to consecutive deliveries from off-spinner Matthew Short either side of lunch.
Moeen, in his first match of the tour, was bowled for five and Overton was caught at short leg from his first ball to register a third successive duck.
"In an ideal world, you would like every player to spend the right amount of time at the crease, but it doesn't always work out that way," said Farbrace. "Moeen has a few more days to practise and work at his game.
"You can't see Craig is out of form - he's only faced 13 balls in three innings! He's here for his bowling and any runs that he can contribute will be a bonus."
When Stuart Broad was caught sweeping, England had slipped from 419-5 to 457-9.
The dependable Woakes and solid Crane took England past 500, their stand ended when Woakes was caught behind off Milenko.
England spinners break through
As on day one, England were frustrated by the CA XI openers. This time, Carder was joined by Gibson, with Nick Larkin absent because of a hand injury.
Broad was accurate with the new ball but Woakes, who took six wickets in the first innings, was expensive and Overton's eagerness to be hostile sometimes resulted in over-doing the bouncers.
In truth, the pitch is looking increasingly more suited to slow bowling, with Moeen and Crane successful late on.
Off-spinner Moeen, having recovered from a side strain, was rusty to begin with but, after switching ends, had Carder caught at slip and bowled the sweeping Gibson.
When leg-spinner Crane enticed Will Pucovski to edge to slip, England's efforts looked more respectable.
Day 4
Cricket Australia XI 9 for 249 (Short 51, Woakes 6-54) v England
Chris Woakes doesn't fit the classic image of a fast bowler.
While the newspapers in Australia are full of stories of his counterparts - brooding, menacing types persuaded to stare down the lens like it just took the last pringle - promising to unleash pace and destruction upon England, Woakes responded to another outstanding performance by saying "it was nice". And then, after a pause, "and pleasing".
Make a headline out of that: "It's nice," roared Woakes. "It's pleasing," bellowed Woakes. "I'm focusing on my processes," vowed Woakes.
But beneath the bluster, beneath the wearying propaganda that seems to preface Ashes series these days, Woakes is getting on with his job "very nicely" indeed. And while most of the media may be fixated on the damage the Australian fast bowlers are promising to inflict on England and the absence of Ben Stokes, the tourists' other fast-bowling allrounder is enjoying the opportunity to warm-up for a confrontation that could go a long way to defining his career. And the result of the series.
Woakes' performance is vital. If he can replicate his record in England - where he has 42 Test wickets at a cost of 24.28 apiece - he will have given England a potency that will support James Anderson and Stuart Broad and ensure they have a viable attack. If he cannot improve his overseas record - he has currently taken eight Test wickets outside England (and Wales) at a cost of 63.75 apiece - then too much will be required of England's opening bowlers and it is hard to see how they win.
The key would appear to be movement. If Woakes can persuade the Kookaburra ball (used here) to move laterally as he can the Duke's (used in England) then his other qualities - his control, his relative pace (upper 80s, you would think) and his bounce - will all be enhanced.
So the good news - from an England perspective - from this tour to date is that he is finding that movement and, as a result, proving a tough proposition. Even on these pudding pitches.
Woakes, for the second time in successive innings, produced a spell that effectively cut the opposition in half. This time it was four - the first four wickets to fall - for 15 in six overs. Later he returned to claim two more. It means he has, at present, claimed 12 first-class wickets on this tour at a cost of just 10.25 apiece. The opposition is about to get much tougher but the pace he is bowling and the movement he is generating are encouraging.
It may be tempting to read some diffidence into Woakes' softly-spoken manner. To imagine that he will recoil in the furnace of the Gabba.
Chris Woakes feels he is coming to the boil nicely ahead of the first Test in Brisbane.
Woakes claimed 6 for 54 on the first day of the match against a CA XI in Townsville and afterwards spoke of his delight at his own rhythm and his ability to move the Kookaburra ball.
"All the numbers are saying I'm getting close to getting cooked," Woakes said. "I'm pleased with where my body is at and getting overs in the legs is important. You don't want to go in to the Test series undercooked and I'm pleased with where I'm at.
"We got a bit of shape with the ball, which was nice. There has been a lot spoken about the Kookaburra ball not doing as much as the Duke's and generally it doesn't. The fact that we got a bit of movement today is pleasing and builds some confidence with this ball that we are not as used to.
"The most important thing today was that I was pleased with how it came out and my rhythm. Six wickets is pleasing but had I picked up one or two I would still have been pleased."
Tempting but wrong. Instead his quiet manner reflects a confidence in his own ability, which doesn't require the layer of bravado others see fit to use. He knows it is performances that matter, not rhetoric. And he knows, if he "nails his processes" he will end the tour in a "very nice, very pleasing" mood. What's that saying about empty vessels and loudest sounds? Talk doesn't take wickets.
It's been noticeable in Woakes' career to date that he has produced some of his most eye-catching performances when his side have been under pressure. How about that 11-wicket haul against Pakistan at Lord's? England lost. Or that unbeaten 95 in an ODI against Sri Lanka at Trent Bridge? He came in when England were 82 for 6 and chasing 287. Both times, the pressure brought the best out of him.
His wickets here generally came from deliveries on or around off-stump that either bounced or nibbled away. So once Nick Larkin and Josh Carder's fine opening stand (they put on 66 in 26 overs as England failed to fully utilise the first new ball) was ended with Larkin slashing to gully, Carder and Ryan Gibson were unfortunate enough to receive balls that demanded a stroke and nipped away just enough. Jason Sangha and Simon Milenko were beaten for pace by full deliveries while Harry Nielsen also pushed one to gully.
Broad's figures, in comparison, were modest. But he bowled fine generally and used this game for the warm-up that it is. He is, in the best sense of the word, something of a show-off. And performing amid the bucolic charm of Riverway Stadium - and a vocal crowd who were never far away from reminding him he remained wicketless for most of the day - was never likely to inspire him.
This is another slow pitch, too. Disappointingly slow. England opted to come here over other options (Drummoyne in Sydney and Hobart were mentioned) as the ground had a reputation for pace that was akin to that expected in Brisbane. Instead, they have something more akin to New Road. Mount Louisa, off in the distance, even did a passable impression of the Malvern Hills. For the third time in succession, they surface they have encountered has been markedly different to that expected in Brisbane.
The England camp are remaining tight-lipped on their view of the preparation they have been provided. But it will be no surprise if, the next time they are here for an Ashes series, they bring a battery of their own seamers (and perhaps hire their own training facility) to ensure they face more taxing bowling. The likes of Mark Footitt, Stuart Meaker, Olly Stone and Richard Gleeson could all have been employed - fitness permitting - to ensure England experienced some pace ahead of the Ashes.
Cricket Australia would have you believe this CA XI represents almost the best opposition available with the Shield in full swing. It's not entirely true, though. Ed Cowan, for example, says he would have loved to play this game but, having been offered the opportunity to appear only 48-hours ahead of the Adelaide match, could only promise his availability for the second game. Perhaps, with a bit of planning, the likes of Cameron White and Michael Klinger could have been included, too?
England experienced a few nervous moments during the day, though. The most serious came when Jonny Bairstow had to leave the field after hurting the middle finger of his left hand in scuffing a delivery off the bowling of Woakes that appeared to bounce just in front of him.
While Ben Foakes, who was permitted to take the gloves by the umpires despite not being named in the XI, is a more than capable deputy (and soon had a catch - perhaps the first 'caught Foakes, bowled Woakes' of many), the thought of losing Bairstow from England's middle-order is enough to keep Joe Root up at night. He will, therefore, have been hugely relieved to see Bairstow reclaim the gloves about 50 minutes later having been diagnosed with nothing more serious than a bruise.
The cordon remains a bit of a concern, though. While James Vince, so fallible in the slips during his first spell in the side, has taken to the gully position with some class - he held three sharp chances on the first day here, none of them easy - another two or three chances went begging in the region. The most straightforward went to Root, off Mason Crane, when Matthew Short had 36, while Bairstow - leaping in front of first slip - put down another (this time off Woakes) to reprieve Milenko. Another edge, again off Crane, went between Bairstow and Root, while Mark Stoneman dropped a tough chance - he did well to get a hand on it, really - when Short cut Crane on 25.
Short took advantage of his reprieves to record a stubborn half-century (51 from 122 balls with just two boundaries) and ensure the CA XI recovered from the loss of four wickets for 25 runs either side of lunch.
Craig Overton impressed, too. He has settled into this tour nicely and, with his height and ability to generate movement, has demanded respect from the batsmen. He has conceded almost exactly two an over in the first-class games on this tour so far and has given himself an outstanding chance of a Test debut in a week's time.
There was also good news off the pitch for England. James Anderson, who missed training on Tuesday due to illness, bowled in the nets, while Jake Ball returned to running for the first time since sustaining strained ankle ligaments in Adelaide, and later also enjoyed a gentle bowl.
Day 2
England XI 3 for 337 (Stoneman 111, Cook 70, Root 62*, Malan 57*) lead Cricket Australia XI 250 (Short 51, Woakes 6-57) by 87 runs
Townsville is, in many ways, a ferocious place.
Oh, it's pretty. It has a mountain range, a shoreline and beautiful forests. The shops and bars seem nice, too.
But the sun is brutal and the wind is fierce. It doesn't rain for years at a time - literally - and the land provides a home for snakes, wild dogs, scorpions and spiders so large it's hard to believe they're not ponies on the way to a fancy dress party. "Don't worry," the locals tell you. "The bigger they are the less poisonous they are." But these spiders can beat you to death. They can wait for you in a dark carpark, steal your wallet and demand protection money from local businesses.
But even though there's something that can burn, bite, poison or sting you just about every square inch, it's still preferable to be on land than in the water. Because if you find yourself in the water round here (lakes or sea, anyway; the shower is fine once you've checked for spiders) you're in real trouble. You'll be sharing with sharks, crocodiles and jelly-fish all of which will delight in killing you. Beaches in Queensland have been shut 50 times in recent weeks for one of the above and, at present in Townsville, there is a warning about a four metre croc (described as a "problem crocodile" as opposed to all those laidback easy-going ones) that is lurking close to shore.
The bats have rabies, the koalas have chlamydia and even the magpies - vast, pterodactyl-like creatures that threaten to carry you off in their talons - have been known to kill. "Ah, don't worry," a local said on Thursday. "The worst those spiders can do is paralyse you." It'll be a miracle if any of us get out alive.
But, for a few hours on Thursday, the middle at the Riverway Stadium looked like paradise. For batsmen, at least. The pitch was gentle, the bowling even more so and Alastair Cook and Mark Stoneman seized the opportunity with both hands.
Stoneman has looked fine all trip. He has passed 50 every time he has come to the crease and here became the first man on the tour to register a century. He gave one chance - Nick Larkin, at gully, put him down on 41 off Simon Milenko; Larkin, the one man with a first-class hundred in this CA side, sustained a fracture and will not feature in the rest of this match - but generally looked utterly in command. He doesn't hook - he tends to duck the bouncer - but he pulls nicely, cuts very well and has a lovely, fluid drive. There were many jokes about Australians never having heard of several of this England squad when they arrived: it seems safe to suggest they'll know the Stoneman name before he heads home.
Underlining England's mantra about going on to convert good starts in match-defining scores, Stoneman didn't even take off his helmet to acknowledge the applause when he reached three figures: a century can't be seen as a destination by England on this tour; it has to be a landmark on the way to a more distant goal. He was angry with himself - punching his bat in frustration - for scuffing a return catch to the legspinner Daniel Fallins shortly after tea.
Cook's innings might be more significant. With England's batting line-up lacking experience in these conditions - the likely top nine will, excluding him, have a combination of six Test caps in Australia between them - his knowledge of three previous tours provides reassurance. He has looked horribly out of form until this innings, but here looked comfortable and confident. From his very first delivery, when the ball thudded against the middle of his defensive bat, his movements were more certain, his judgement more precise.
He looked furious with himself for his dismissal - attempting to guide a cut behind point, he managed only an edge - and for missing out on a hundred, but this was a good step forward from him. He, and the England management, will sleep a little easier as a result.
The one nagging worry - and it nagged particularly hard as Dawid Malan and Joe Root settled in against unthreatening spin bowling in the final session - is that this surface and this opposition will bear little comparison to that anticipated in Brisbane. It's like preparing for an artic trek by buying yourself a cornetto. England may still be in for a shock in Brisbane.
Opinion is divided over whether this represents a desperately cynical ploy from Cricket Australia or simply reflects the shallowing depth of their playing reserves. If it is the latter, they have a significant problem lurking just below the surface. If it is the former, there might be a certain poetic justice if this tactic came back to bite Cricket Australia on the backside like one of those spiders that lurks under the toilet bowl round these parts (yes, nowhere is safe). While it is undeniably true that the standard of opposition - and the pace of surfaces - will increase sharply next week, it may be that England have had the opportunity to acclimatise, gain confidence and form ahead of the serious business ahead.
James Vince was the one man to fail to take advantage. Since the 82 he made to start the tour - a non-first-class innings that saw him dropped twice - he has fallen between 26 and 33 in his three subsequent innings. He has time to play the ball and is wonderfully easy on the eye, but there is a vulnerability that renders his selection at No. 3 quite a risk. While he was given not out here initially, the umpires consulted and it was eventually decided he had played one off his pad to short leg. He looked aghast at the decision. Or, perhaps, at having missed out. Batting in first-class cricket in Australia has rarely looked as comfortable.
Day 3
Cricket Australia XI 250 & 121-3: Gibson 49, Moeen 2-34, Crane 1-24
England 515: Stoneman 111, Malan 109, Root 83
England lead by 144 runs
England improved late on a mixed third day of their final Ashes warm-up match against a Cricket Australia XI in Townsville.
Although Dawid Malan converted his overnight 57 into a century, England at one stage lost five wickets for 38.
A last-wicket stand of 58 between Chris Woakes and Mason Crane took the tourists to 515 all out.
CA XI openers Daniel Carder and Ryan Gibson shared 80 but spinners Moeen Ali and Crane reduced the hosts to 121-3.
Joe Root's side are in firm control - they lead by 144 runs - and will probably complete a big win on Saturday's final day, but for long periods this was an unsatisfactory day with the first Test against Australia less than a week away.
As Australia named a surprising squad for the match at the Gabba, England's lower order wasted the opportunity of time at the crease and the pace bowlers then lacked penetration on an unresponsive pitch.
"It was a mixed day," assistant coach Paul Farbrace told BBC Sport. "We took our eye off the ball with the bat.
"We are in a good position but, in terms of preparation for next week, we have dipped below where we have been during the first two days, which is a shame."
Malan follows Stoneman's lead
Like Mark Stoneman on Thursday, Malan responded to calls from captain Root and coach Trevor Bayliss for England's batsmen to convert starts into big scores.
Resuming in partnership with Root with England 337-3, the left-hander played eye-catching cover drives and clips off the pads on the way to his 19th first-class century.
Root, who began the day on 62, looked set for a hundred of his own until he was brilliantly caught down the leg side by wicketkeeper Harry Neilsen off pace bowler Simon Milenko for 83.
Malan angled the off-spin of Matthew Short to third man to reach three figures, but his slow response to Moeen's call meant he failed to beat Daniel Carder's throw from short fine leg in the middle of the late-order collapse.
"For someone who is playing in this country for the first time, he has shown that the extra pace and bounce in the wickets suit his game," said Farbrace.
"He found it difficult in England this summer when the ball nipped around, but he looks very much at home here."
Late-order slump
Jonny Bairstow slapped a full toss from leg-spinner Daniel Fallins to mid-on to depart for 19, but he at least made an unbeaten 61 against the same opposition last week.
For Moeen and Craig Overton, who may be required to contribute runs from number nine if he makes his Test debut at the Gabba, chances of batting in the middle may now have run out.
Both fell to consecutive deliveries from off-spinner Matthew Short either side of lunch.
Moeen, in his first match of the tour, was bowled for five and Overton was caught at short leg from his first ball to register a third successive duck.
"In an ideal world, you would like every player to spend the right amount of time at the crease, but it doesn't always work out that way," said Farbrace. "Moeen has a few more days to practise and work at his game.
"You can't see Craig is out of form - he's only faced 13 balls in three innings! He's here for his bowling and any runs that he can contribute will be a bonus."
When Stuart Broad was caught sweeping, England had slipped from 419-5 to 457-9.
The dependable Woakes and solid Crane took England past 500, their stand ended when Woakes was caught behind off Milenko.
England spinners break through
As on day one, England were frustrated by the CA XI openers. This time, Carder was joined by Gibson, with Nick Larkin absent because of a hand injury.
Broad was accurate with the new ball but Woakes, who took six wickets in the first innings, was expensive and Overton's eagerness to be hostile sometimes resulted in over-doing the bouncers.
In truth, the pitch is looking increasingly more suited to slow bowling, with Moeen and Crane successful late on.
Off-spinner Moeen, having recovered from a side strain, was rusty to begin with but, after switching ends, had Carder caught at slip and bowled the sweeping Gibson.
When leg-spinner Crane enticed Will Pucovski to edge to slip, England's efforts looked more respectable.
Day 4
Cricket Australia XI 250 & 364/4 (110 ov)
England 515
Match drawn
England narrowly avoided the indignity of going wicketless on the final day of their last Ashes warm-up game against a Cricket Australia XI in Townsville.
Jason Sangha, 18, and Matthew Short - with only seven first-class matches between them - made maiden centuries.
They shared a stand of 263, Sangha falling to leg-spinner Mason Crane before a draw was agreed with the hosts on 364-4 - 99 ahead.
Sangha was dropped by Mark Stoneman on 43, but England created little else.
The tourists were not helped by a placid, unresponsive pitch, but the mitigating circumstances do little to improve damaged morale so close to Thursday's first Test against Australia in Brisbane.
On Friday, England looked to be heading to the Gabba in good health, especially after the announcement of a surprising Australia squad.
But, at best, this is a setback. At worst, it is an embarrassment.
England humbled by inexperienced hosts
England comfortably defeated a similar Cricket Australia XI in Adelaide last week and for two days in northern Queensland they looked set to do so again.
However, from 337-3 at the beginning of day three, England lost five wickets for 38 runs and needed a last-wicket stand of 58 between Chris Woakes and Crane to get past 500.
Even then, they reduced the CA XI to 121-3 by the close and led by 144, with the hosts a batsman short because of an injury to Nick Larkin.
But Sangha and Short made the most of the benign conditions to ensure England spent the fourth day toiling in the heat.
The slow surface is unlikely to be similar to what England will encounter at the Gabba, yet the tourists should still have had the tools to dismiss a side with only 75 previous first-class matches between them.
"It's not really damaging to us," England coach Trevor Bayliss told BBC Sport. "Obviously we'd like to take 10 wickets for 90 runs in every game, but this is what can happen in cricket.
"A number of guys spent time in the middle with the bat and the bowlers got a lot of overs under their belts. Hopefully everyone now has got their rhythms right and they can come out next week and go from ball one."
Sangha and Short steal the show
Two weeks ago, Sangha and captain Short, 22, were playing club cricket in Sydney and Melbourne respectively. Neither have played a match in the Sheffield Shield.
But they blunted and at times dismissed an England attack that included at least three bowlers who will play in Brisbane.
Sangha, who made his first-class debut last week, was fortunate to be put down when he drilled a Crane full toss to Stoneman at short cover.
With a correct technique, the right-hander regularly scored square of the wicket on the off side.
When he pulled Woakes for four, he became the second youngest man, behind Sachin Tendulkar, to score a first-class hundred against England.
Short, more bottom-handed and with a preference for the leg side, hit one six off Crane that was caught by a diving member of the groundstaff. He reached three figures by pushing Moeen Ali through point for three and ended unbeaten on 134.
Their stand was ended after tea when Sangha top-edged Crane to short fine leg to depart for 133, but by then England had nothing to celebrate.
England do the hard yards
Even allowing for the ideal batting conditions, England showed little penetration, barely beating the bat or hitting the pads.
Stuart Broad was tidy and Woakes used sparingly but fellow pace bowler Craig Overton harmed his chances of a Test debut in Brisbane with a toothless display - his attempts at unsettling Short with bouncers were treated with disdain.
Off-spinner Moeen, in his first game of the tour after recovering from a side injury, has at least bowled 48 overs in the match, while Crane served up too many full tosses.
By the end, England were using part-timers Joe Root and Dawid Malan to protect the frontliners and hasten the finish.
"It was a very flat wicket," said Bayliss. "It was good to spend some time in the field. I'm sure there will be times during the Test series where we're out in the field all day.
"There were two young guys out there that batted very, very well. All credit to them. They looked good. It's good for Australian cricket."
Sunday, 12 November 2017
Women's Ashes Test Match
England 280 & 206-2: Knight 79*, Elwiss 41*
Australia 448-9 dec: Perry 213*, McGrath 47, Healy 45, Ecclestone 3-107, Marsh 3-109
Match drawn; both sides take 2pts, Australia lead series 6-4
Captain Heather Knight led a stubborn rearguard action as England forced a draw against Australia to keep the multi-format Women's Ashes alive.
Australia would have retained the trophy if they had won this inaugural day-night Test, but needed to bowl England out on the final day in Sydney.
England began on 40-0, 128 runs behind, but after losing their openers, Knight (79 not out) added an unbroken 117 with Georgia Elwiss (41 not out) to keep Australia at bay before a draw was agreed with the tourists on 206-2.
Australia now lead the series 6-4 on points, meaning - barring intervention from the weather - England need to win all three Twenty20 internationals in order to regain the Ashes trophy.
Ellyse Perry's sparkling double century on day three had left the hosts in the ascendancy, but neither side were helped by a lifeless North Sydney Oval pitch which gave no assistance to the bowlers, and it must be a concern that the T20 series begins on Friday at the same ground - with the same pitch reportedly set to be reused.
Australia 448-9 dec: Perry 213*, McGrath 47, Healy 45, Ecclestone 3-107, Marsh 3-109
Match drawn; both sides take 2pts, Australia lead series 6-4
Captain Heather Knight led a stubborn rearguard action as England forced a draw against Australia to keep the multi-format Women's Ashes alive.
Australia would have retained the trophy if they had won this inaugural day-night Test, but needed to bowl England out on the final day in Sydney.
England began on 40-0, 128 runs behind, but after losing their openers, Knight (79 not out) added an unbroken 117 with Georgia Elwiss (41 not out) to keep Australia at bay before a draw was agreed with the tourists on 206-2.
Australia now lead the series 6-4 on points, meaning - barring intervention from the weather - England need to win all three Twenty20 internationals in order to regain the Ashes trophy.
Ellyse Perry's sparkling double century on day three had left the hosts in the ascendancy, but neither side were helped by a lifeless North Sydney Oval pitch which gave no assistance to the bowlers, and it must be a concern that the T20 series begins on Friday at the same ground - with the same pitch reportedly set to be reused.
Ashes 2017/18: 4 day tour match: Cricket Aus XI v ENG
Nov 8-11, 2017 - Tour Match at Adelaide Oval (day/night)
All-rounder Craig Overton put himself firmly in the frame for a starting place in the first Ashes Test as he helped England complete a 192-run win over a Cricket Australia XI.
England took just 30 minutes to seal victory on day four as uncapped Overton, 23, finished with 3-15 and James Anderson 3-12, as the hosts were bowled out for 75 in their second innings.
Chris Woakes had taken England to the brink of triumph with 4-17 on day three.
Cricket Australia coach Ryan Harris said: "I think it's going to be a really good series."
Matt Short and Gurinder Sandhu had held England up through an extra half-hour on Friday evening as the hosts recovered from 25 for seven, but Overton broke the eighth-wicket stand without addition to the overnight 45 in the first over of the new day.
Short made it easy for the Somerset seamer, aiming an ambitious pull at a ball which smashed into middle-stump.
Anderson took the ninth wicket, left-hander Sandhu trapped lbw from round the wicket, and the match was over when Anderson had Daniel Fallins flailing an edge to slip in his next over.
All-rounder Craig Overton put himself firmly in the frame for a starting place in the first Ashes Test as he helped England complete a 192-run win over a Cricket Australia XI.
England took just 30 minutes to seal victory on day four as uncapped Overton, 23, finished with 3-15 and James Anderson 3-12, as the hosts were bowled out for 75 in their second innings.
Chris Woakes had taken England to the brink of triumph with 4-17 on day three.
Cricket Australia coach Ryan Harris said: "I think it's going to be a really good series."
Matt Short and Gurinder Sandhu had held England up through an extra half-hour on Friday evening as the hosts recovered from 25 for seven, but Overton broke the eighth-wicket stand without addition to the overnight 45 in the first over of the new day.
Short made it easy for the Somerset seamer, aiming an ambitious pull at a ball which smashed into middle-stump.
Anderson took the ninth wicket, left-hander Sandhu trapped lbw from round the wicket, and the match was over when Anderson had Daniel Fallins flailing an edge to slip in his next over.
Wednesday, 8 November 2017
3 ODI's (2-1 IND), 3 T20's (2-1 IND)
1st ODI
India 280/8 (50 ov)
New Zealand 284/4 (49/50 ov)
New Zealand won by 6 wickets (with 6 balls remaining)
Virat Kohli, in his 200th ODI, sought to play the perfect innings on a slow pitch and in sapping heat. He got lucky when he took the calculated risk, he was also dropped on 29, but that was fortune earned and he went on to score his 31st hundred.
New Zealand took more risks collectively, opened with almost a pinch hitter, but enjoyed less luck than Kohli. Yet, Kohli was let down by his team-mates, 37 being the next best score to his 121, whereas all New Zealand batsmen contributed - Ross Taylor and Tom Latham added 200 - as they chased down 281, only their third win when batting second against India in India.
It was a fascinating contrast of batting approaches. Kohli trusted his game and his fitness to score at around 80 runs per 100 balls without looking to even hit a boundary. He hit only five boundaries in his first 75 runs, two of them without meaning to. New Zealand, on the other hand, came out attacking, with Colin Munro taking a risk every over.
If it was a ploy to put the Indian spinners under pressure even before they were introduced, it didn't work as they managed to still lose wickets. Latham and Taylor, though, swept the spinners to distraction, managed the seamers with ease, and kept finding the boundary whenever the asking rate threatened to become uncomfortable.
That the run rate was not highly demanding was down largely to Trent Boult, who removed the India openers in his first spell, and then took the wickets of MS Dhoni and Hardik Pandya as he conceded just 35 in his 10 overs. He might have dropped an apparent sitter from Kohli, but Mitchell Santner, perhaps the only relatively permanent specialist fingerspinner in limited-overs cricket today, did his bit with the ball, taking Kedar Jadhav's wicket and conceding just 41 runs in his allotment of 10 overs.
Kohli had to find a way around these two and slow conditions to build the India innings single-handedly. He stayed at the wicket for 46 overs in Mumbai's October heat of over 30 degrees centigrade and humidity over 70%, but not once did he miss a quick single or fail to put pressure on the deep fielders with the threat of a second run. He came in to bat when the reunited India openers, Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma, seemed like they had eyes set on the return of the high-scoring ODI in India. Both of them perished to the swing of Boult, and with a shaky idle order to follow, Kohli knew he had to carry the innings.
Kohli did find support from a new middle-order applicant, Dinesh Karthik, who was playing his first ODI in India since 2010, but the support didn't last. Around the 30th over, when wickets come with bigger impact than the earlier ones, Kane Williamson went back to his strike bowlers. In his first over back, Tim Southee sent back Karthik off a mis-hit hook, a shot that had earlier produced three sixes for India.
Now came the spell of play where teams hope for wickets to shut the opposition out. To that end, New Zealand kept going to their strike bowlers. MS Dhoni and Kohli managed to deny New Zealand those wickets, but Dhoni's innings of 42 balls came at a strike rate of under 60. No side could say it owned this period of play, but in the end it proved to be the difference between chasing 281 and 300.
Boult came back to make sure India didn't run away at the end even though Kohli accelerated gradually and Bhuvneshwar Kumar provided a finishing kick with 26 off 15. Eighty-three in those last 10 overs gave India a more than competitive total given the form of their bowlers and the nature of the pitch. However, after a pretty formulaic effort from Australia, India were now against an opposition that was intent on upsetting their rhythm.
Latham, who scored runs in each of his innings in the ODI series in India last year, was asked to step down into the middle order. Munro was asked to distract India's new-ball bowlers. He succeeded for a bit before Jasprit Bumrah's slower one accounted for him. Kuldeep Yadav was in the game right away, getting Williamson with a wrong'un that one of the best batsmen in the world failed to pick. Pandya bounced Martin Guptill out to make it 80 for 3, leaving India potentially one blow away from sealing the defense.
Latham and Taylor, though, had other ideas. Latham, especially, played the cleaner, more controlled innings. He swept and reverse-swept 20 of the 51 balls of spin he faced, taking 35 of his 58 runs of spin through those two shots. Taylor had to curb his leg-side play a little although he stayed partial to his other favourite, the cut. Over by over, shot by shot, the partnership grew. The spinners went past the bat but failed to create a wicket.
There came two opportunities in the field. In the 31st over, Dhoni could have run Taylor out with a direct hit at the bowler's end. Dhoni missed, but Chahal, the bowler, was not at the wicket to collect the throw. In the 36th over, Kohli got a fortunate bounce at cover and Taylor gave up trying to make it. Kohli missed the stumps again. Taylor was 40 and 56 at those instances.
Desperate, India went back to seam bowlers, holding back four overs of spin, hoping they could pounce on the inexperienced batsmen to follow. For that, though, they needed a breakthrough. It wasn't forthcoming as Latham and Taylor willed each other on, punishing every error from India. By the time, the last dice was rolled with the reintroduction of spin, New Zealand needed just 63 from nine overs.
Latham now was in the mood to have some fun, reverse-sweeping both the spinners. The batsmen had to work hard in the humidity; just like Dhoni and Kohli, they had to take frequent breaks. For India, the break came too late, with scores level. Taylor could have manipulated the scoring in the end and followed his partner Latham into a century, but he chose not to disrespect the opposition and took every run and leg-bye on offer. He was caught on 95 with scores level, and you couldn't sense an ounce of disappointment at missing a century.
2nd ODI
New Zealand 230/9 (50 ov)
India 232/4 (46/50 ov)
India won by 6 wickets (with 24 balls remaining)
New Zealand won the first ODI at the Wankhede Stadium courtesy their preparedness against India's spinners, and the success of a key tactical move - swapping the batting positions of Colin Munro and Tom Latham. Three days later, following a trip down the Mumbai-Pune Expressway, India turned the tables with their own counter-tactics, on a pitch with just enough grass on it to allow their fast bowlers to bowl a traditional good length.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar finished with three wickets and Jasprit Bumrah with two, the pair conceding only 83 in their 20 overs as New Zealand set India a target of 231 to level the series. The chase proved straightforward, with Shikhar Dhawan and Dinesh Karthik scoring half-centuries to lead India home with four overs remaining.
New Zealand's fast bowlers didn't begin half as well as their Indian counterparts, with Trent Boult and Tim Southee routinely pitching short in their new-ball spells. India hit seven fours in the first seven overs, and five of them came off the back foot, via pulls and punches and slashes over the slips. Rohit Sharma fell early, flicking Boult in the air, but the easy flow of boundaries meant New Zealand never put any pressure on the second-wicket pair of Dhawan and Virat Kohli, who added 57 off 56 balls.
Kohli fell in the 14th over, driving away from his body at one that wasn't full enough from Colin de Grandhomme, and Karthik walked in at No. 4, joining the endless carousel of batsmen to audition for the role in recent months. He began his innings with a boundary, guiding de Grandhomme between backward point and short third man, and ended the match with another - a sweetly timed on-the-up drive through the covers - but endured a bit of a struggle in between, never entirely fluent but always serving the interests of the chase.
New Zealand never managed two wickets in quick succession, with Karthik a constant thorn at one end: he added 66 with Dhawan for the third wicket, 59 with Hardik Pandya for the fourth, and an unbroken 28 with MS Dhoni for the fifth. The pitch wasn't a belter, but it was still batting-friendly, and New Zealand hadn't set a big enough target to force India into taking any real risks.
For that India will thank their bowlers, particularly Bhuvneshwar and Bumrah. Bowling a mix of slower balls and bouncers, India's new-ball pair exposed Munro's leaden-footed technique, and he plodded his way to 10 off 16 balls before Bhuvneshwar slipped a knuckleball through his defences. Before that, seam movement from a good length took out Martin Guptill and Kane Williamson, both stuck on the crease, the former nicking an away-seamer, the latter lbw to an inducker, and New Zealand were 27 for 3.
It was here that Latham came to the crease. During his unbeaten hundred in Mumbai, the sweep had been his most productive stroke, fetching him 26 runs off 16 balls and putting India's pair of wristspinners off their lengths. India had responded by leaving out one of their wristspinners and bringing in the left-arm orthodox of Axar Patel - a flat, stump-to-stump, and therefore harder-to-sweep bowler. But before bringing Axar on, and as soon as the first Powerplay ended, India brought on Kedar Jadhav, who hadn't bowled at all in Mumbai.
With his round-the-wicket angle and low-arm release, Jadhav either angled the ball into Latham's stumps or occasionally fired one wide of off stump, neither line conducive to the sweep, particularly given Jadhav's lack of bounce. He bowled seven straight overs in his first spell, and only conceded 24, and in that time Latham played him with a studiously straight bat, only sweeping twice while scoring 11 off 23 balls.
Jadhav's spell kept Latham in check, and in the time he was at the crease - in the company of Ross Taylor and then Henry Nicholls - New Zealand only managed 91 runs in 22.1 overs. The sweep appeared more frequently once Jadhav went out of the attack, but eventually the shot cost Latham his wicket, for 38 off 62 balls, as he failed to cover for Axar Patel's switch to left-arm around.
The arrival of de Grandhomme perked up New Zealand's scoring, the allrounder playing a number of eye-catching flicks and on-drives while adding 47 for the sixth wicket at 5.42 per over with the more prosaic Nicholls. But just when the partnership was looking threatening, Bhuvneshwar broke it in the 38th over, when he returned for a two-over second spell. Again he hit that perfect length to prompt Nicholls to drive without getting a full stride forward, and again he found just enough movement to beat the inside edge and peg back leg stump.
Bhuvneshwar and Bumrah only conceded 12 in the last four overs of the second Powerplay, and perhaps this built extra pressure on de Grandhomme, who fell while trying to push the pace in the last over of spin, the 44th. Yuzvendra Chahal tossed one up wide of off stump, and de Grandhomme, reaching out for the big one, sliced a catch to short third man. Chahal's next ball was a slider, which caught Adam Milne plumb in front.
New Zealand were 188 for 8 at this point. Mitchell Santner and Tim Southee ensured they would end up with a fighting total, courtesy a ninth-wicket stand of 32, but 230 was still decidedly below par.
3rd ODI
India 337/6 (50 ov)
New Zealand 331/7 (50 ov)
India won by 6 runs
Elation, after a seventh straight bilateral ODI series win, for India. Heartbreak for a New Zealand side that has been among the best prepared and most tenacious limited-overs teams to visit the country in recent years. Why is this only a three-match series?
New Zealand came to Kanpur with a poor record in ODI deciders in India. In each of their three previous attempts, their batting had let them down: they fell short of 200 in both 1995 and 1999 and, on this day last year, imploded to 79 all out.
It's not the proudest record, and on Sunday New Zealand were set quite a task to break their decider duck in India. With Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli scoring hundreds and becoming the first ODI pair to combine in four double-century stands, India set them 338 to win. They had only completed two bigger successful chases.
That set the stage for the two teams to trade punch and counter-punch in a riveting microcosm of the entire series.
Colin Munro set things rolling by stepping out and carting the third ball of the innings over the midwicket boundary. The next three balls disappeared for fours, and Bhuvneshwar Kumar - steady, dependable Bhuvneshwar Kumar - was dazed and bemused. Trying to somehow cramp Munro for room with round-the-wicket bouncers, he sent down three wides in his third over, and by the end of his first spell was nursing figures of 0 for 51 in five.
But at the other end, Jasprit Bumrah kept things sane, extracting whatever little help a flat Green Park pitch could give him by hitting it hard with maximum backspin or, in the case of his slower offcutter, sidespin. His first spell read 4-0-12-1, Martin Guptill an excellent choice for 50th ODI wicket.
Tom Latham prepares to reverse sweep off the back of the bat Associated Press
New Zealand remained on track, with Munro and Kane Williamson adding 109 for the second wicket and moving the score to 153 for 1 in the 25th over. The counter-punch, this time, came from Yuzvendra Chahal, the only other bowler apart from Bumrah to get something out of the surface. He did this by means of hard-spun legbreaks - one drifted away from Munro and broke back in to bowl him through the gate, the other, dangled slower and wider, forced Williamson to miscue a slog-sweep. New Zealand, suddenly, were 168 for 3.
Enter Tom Latham, New Zealand's most improved and most impressive batsman on this tour. In Mumbai he had swept his way to a match-winning hundred; his innings here was perhaps even better, showcasing not just deftness against spin but also pristine timing against the fast bowlers, particularly square on the off side and off his legs. He dominated a 79-run stand with Ross Taylor, and then added 59, off just 40 balls, with the scrappy and highly effective Henry Nicholls.
When Bhuvneshwar, producing the perfect yorker on a day when little else went right for him, ended that stand, New Zealand needed 32 off 19 to win. Not the worst time for your biggest hitter to walk in.
Except it wasn't to be Colin de Grandhomme's day; his indecision played a part in Latham being run out for 65 off 52, and he didn't seem to have his hitting gloves on either. With Bhuvneshwar and Bumrah landing a dew-sodden ball there or thereabouts in the closing overs, the target slipped away from New Zealand's reach. It came down to 15 off the last over, but they were never going to get it against Bumrah in this sort of form.
New Zealand could have been chasing significantly more than 338 had their bowlers not pulled India back through the last 10 overs, in which they took five wickets while conceding only 85.
Three of those were the result of catches at long-off - a not insignificant detail, for it encapsulated the value of the fifth boundary fielder in the third Powerplay. In the last five overs of the second Powerplay, when mid-off was usually inside the circle, Rohit and Kohli had hit six fours and a six in the arc between deep extra-cover and long-off. India scored 56 in that five-over period, and Kohli and Rohit looked unstoppable.
In his 28th match, Jasprit Bumrah became the second fastest Indian to 50 wickets BCCI
But the relaxation of field restrictions gave New Zealand a bit more control. Rohit and Hardik Pandya fell to Mitchell Santner's changes of pace and trajectory while going for big hits, while a Tim Southee slower ball undid Kohli's attempt at clearing long-off. Between the end of the 40th over and Kohli's dismissal, India had only managed three boundaries. MS Dhoni and Kedar Jadhav manufactured three fours and a six thereafter, and India picked up 35 off the last 20 legal balls of their innings. Those runs would prove quite handy.
Rohit and Kohli came together in the seventh over of India's innings, when Shikhar Dhawan spooned Southee to mid-off, and immediately gave the sense of settling themselves for a long stay.
Kohli looked in rare form right from the time he walked in, flicking an off-stump ball to the right of midwicket to get off the mark and then punching Southee through the gap between cover point and extra-cover, but despite this he slipped into a sidekick role, happy to get off strike and watch Rohit do his thing. He did, however, become the fastest player to 9000 runs in one-day cricket.
Rohit's innings contained all the classic Rohit ingredients - the back-foot punches, the front-foot pulls in front of square, the drives down the ground - and also a determination to rectify the mistakes of his previous two innings. He had been out playing across the line in the first two ODIs, and didn't repeat that mistake here. In the eighth over, for instance, he got a full, middle-and-leg ball from Trent Boult, similar to the one he flicked in the air in Pune, only this time he showed the full face of the bat and picked up four to the left of mid-on.
Once he got his eye in, boundaries flowed to all parts. The fifty came up off 52 balls, the hundred off 106, and with Kohli following in his slipstream a total in the 350-370 range looked possible. India didn't get that far, but they eventually got far enough. Just about.
India 280/8 (50 ov)
New Zealand 284/4 (49/50 ov)
New Zealand won by 6 wickets (with 6 balls remaining)
Virat Kohli, in his 200th ODI, sought to play the perfect innings on a slow pitch and in sapping heat. He got lucky when he took the calculated risk, he was also dropped on 29, but that was fortune earned and he went on to score his 31st hundred.
New Zealand took more risks collectively, opened with almost a pinch hitter, but enjoyed less luck than Kohli. Yet, Kohli was let down by his team-mates, 37 being the next best score to his 121, whereas all New Zealand batsmen contributed - Ross Taylor and Tom Latham added 200 - as they chased down 281, only their third win when batting second against India in India.
It was a fascinating contrast of batting approaches. Kohli trusted his game and his fitness to score at around 80 runs per 100 balls without looking to even hit a boundary. He hit only five boundaries in his first 75 runs, two of them without meaning to. New Zealand, on the other hand, came out attacking, with Colin Munro taking a risk every over.
If it was a ploy to put the Indian spinners under pressure even before they were introduced, it didn't work as they managed to still lose wickets. Latham and Taylor, though, swept the spinners to distraction, managed the seamers with ease, and kept finding the boundary whenever the asking rate threatened to become uncomfortable.
That the run rate was not highly demanding was down largely to Trent Boult, who removed the India openers in his first spell, and then took the wickets of MS Dhoni and Hardik Pandya as he conceded just 35 in his 10 overs. He might have dropped an apparent sitter from Kohli, but Mitchell Santner, perhaps the only relatively permanent specialist fingerspinner in limited-overs cricket today, did his bit with the ball, taking Kedar Jadhav's wicket and conceding just 41 runs in his allotment of 10 overs.
Kohli had to find a way around these two and slow conditions to build the India innings single-handedly. He stayed at the wicket for 46 overs in Mumbai's October heat of over 30 degrees centigrade and humidity over 70%, but not once did he miss a quick single or fail to put pressure on the deep fielders with the threat of a second run. He came in to bat when the reunited India openers, Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma, seemed like they had eyes set on the return of the high-scoring ODI in India. Both of them perished to the swing of Boult, and with a shaky idle order to follow, Kohli knew he had to carry the innings.
Kohli did find support from a new middle-order applicant, Dinesh Karthik, who was playing his first ODI in India since 2010, but the support didn't last. Around the 30th over, when wickets come with bigger impact than the earlier ones, Kane Williamson went back to his strike bowlers. In his first over back, Tim Southee sent back Karthik off a mis-hit hook, a shot that had earlier produced three sixes for India.
Now came the spell of play where teams hope for wickets to shut the opposition out. To that end, New Zealand kept going to their strike bowlers. MS Dhoni and Kohli managed to deny New Zealand those wickets, but Dhoni's innings of 42 balls came at a strike rate of under 60. No side could say it owned this period of play, but in the end it proved to be the difference between chasing 281 and 300.
Boult came back to make sure India didn't run away at the end even though Kohli accelerated gradually and Bhuvneshwar Kumar provided a finishing kick with 26 off 15. Eighty-three in those last 10 overs gave India a more than competitive total given the form of their bowlers and the nature of the pitch. However, after a pretty formulaic effort from Australia, India were now against an opposition that was intent on upsetting their rhythm.
Latham, who scored runs in each of his innings in the ODI series in India last year, was asked to step down into the middle order. Munro was asked to distract India's new-ball bowlers. He succeeded for a bit before Jasprit Bumrah's slower one accounted for him. Kuldeep Yadav was in the game right away, getting Williamson with a wrong'un that one of the best batsmen in the world failed to pick. Pandya bounced Martin Guptill out to make it 80 for 3, leaving India potentially one blow away from sealing the defense.
Latham and Taylor, though, had other ideas. Latham, especially, played the cleaner, more controlled innings. He swept and reverse-swept 20 of the 51 balls of spin he faced, taking 35 of his 58 runs of spin through those two shots. Taylor had to curb his leg-side play a little although he stayed partial to his other favourite, the cut. Over by over, shot by shot, the partnership grew. The spinners went past the bat but failed to create a wicket.
There came two opportunities in the field. In the 31st over, Dhoni could have run Taylor out with a direct hit at the bowler's end. Dhoni missed, but Chahal, the bowler, was not at the wicket to collect the throw. In the 36th over, Kohli got a fortunate bounce at cover and Taylor gave up trying to make it. Kohli missed the stumps again. Taylor was 40 and 56 at those instances.
Desperate, India went back to seam bowlers, holding back four overs of spin, hoping they could pounce on the inexperienced batsmen to follow. For that, though, they needed a breakthrough. It wasn't forthcoming as Latham and Taylor willed each other on, punishing every error from India. By the time, the last dice was rolled with the reintroduction of spin, New Zealand needed just 63 from nine overs.
Latham now was in the mood to have some fun, reverse-sweeping both the spinners. The batsmen had to work hard in the humidity; just like Dhoni and Kohli, they had to take frequent breaks. For India, the break came too late, with scores level. Taylor could have manipulated the scoring in the end and followed his partner Latham into a century, but he chose not to disrespect the opposition and took every run and leg-bye on offer. He was caught on 95 with scores level, and you couldn't sense an ounce of disappointment at missing a century.
2nd ODI
New Zealand 230/9 (50 ov)
India 232/4 (46/50 ov)
India won by 6 wickets (with 24 balls remaining)
New Zealand won the first ODI at the Wankhede Stadium courtesy their preparedness against India's spinners, and the success of a key tactical move - swapping the batting positions of Colin Munro and Tom Latham. Three days later, following a trip down the Mumbai-Pune Expressway, India turned the tables with their own counter-tactics, on a pitch with just enough grass on it to allow their fast bowlers to bowl a traditional good length.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar finished with three wickets and Jasprit Bumrah with two, the pair conceding only 83 in their 20 overs as New Zealand set India a target of 231 to level the series. The chase proved straightforward, with Shikhar Dhawan and Dinesh Karthik scoring half-centuries to lead India home with four overs remaining.
New Zealand's fast bowlers didn't begin half as well as their Indian counterparts, with Trent Boult and Tim Southee routinely pitching short in their new-ball spells. India hit seven fours in the first seven overs, and five of them came off the back foot, via pulls and punches and slashes over the slips. Rohit Sharma fell early, flicking Boult in the air, but the easy flow of boundaries meant New Zealand never put any pressure on the second-wicket pair of Dhawan and Virat Kohli, who added 57 off 56 balls.
Kohli fell in the 14th over, driving away from his body at one that wasn't full enough from Colin de Grandhomme, and Karthik walked in at No. 4, joining the endless carousel of batsmen to audition for the role in recent months. He began his innings with a boundary, guiding de Grandhomme between backward point and short third man, and ended the match with another - a sweetly timed on-the-up drive through the covers - but endured a bit of a struggle in between, never entirely fluent but always serving the interests of the chase.
New Zealand never managed two wickets in quick succession, with Karthik a constant thorn at one end: he added 66 with Dhawan for the third wicket, 59 with Hardik Pandya for the fourth, and an unbroken 28 with MS Dhoni for the fifth. The pitch wasn't a belter, but it was still batting-friendly, and New Zealand hadn't set a big enough target to force India into taking any real risks.
For that India will thank their bowlers, particularly Bhuvneshwar and Bumrah. Bowling a mix of slower balls and bouncers, India's new-ball pair exposed Munro's leaden-footed technique, and he plodded his way to 10 off 16 balls before Bhuvneshwar slipped a knuckleball through his defences. Before that, seam movement from a good length took out Martin Guptill and Kane Williamson, both stuck on the crease, the former nicking an away-seamer, the latter lbw to an inducker, and New Zealand were 27 for 3.
It was here that Latham came to the crease. During his unbeaten hundred in Mumbai, the sweep had been his most productive stroke, fetching him 26 runs off 16 balls and putting India's pair of wristspinners off their lengths. India had responded by leaving out one of their wristspinners and bringing in the left-arm orthodox of Axar Patel - a flat, stump-to-stump, and therefore harder-to-sweep bowler. But before bringing Axar on, and as soon as the first Powerplay ended, India brought on Kedar Jadhav, who hadn't bowled at all in Mumbai.
With his round-the-wicket angle and low-arm release, Jadhav either angled the ball into Latham's stumps or occasionally fired one wide of off stump, neither line conducive to the sweep, particularly given Jadhav's lack of bounce. He bowled seven straight overs in his first spell, and only conceded 24, and in that time Latham played him with a studiously straight bat, only sweeping twice while scoring 11 off 23 balls.
Jadhav's spell kept Latham in check, and in the time he was at the crease - in the company of Ross Taylor and then Henry Nicholls - New Zealand only managed 91 runs in 22.1 overs. The sweep appeared more frequently once Jadhav went out of the attack, but eventually the shot cost Latham his wicket, for 38 off 62 balls, as he failed to cover for Axar Patel's switch to left-arm around.
The arrival of de Grandhomme perked up New Zealand's scoring, the allrounder playing a number of eye-catching flicks and on-drives while adding 47 for the sixth wicket at 5.42 per over with the more prosaic Nicholls. But just when the partnership was looking threatening, Bhuvneshwar broke it in the 38th over, when he returned for a two-over second spell. Again he hit that perfect length to prompt Nicholls to drive without getting a full stride forward, and again he found just enough movement to beat the inside edge and peg back leg stump.
Bhuvneshwar and Bumrah only conceded 12 in the last four overs of the second Powerplay, and perhaps this built extra pressure on de Grandhomme, who fell while trying to push the pace in the last over of spin, the 44th. Yuzvendra Chahal tossed one up wide of off stump, and de Grandhomme, reaching out for the big one, sliced a catch to short third man. Chahal's next ball was a slider, which caught Adam Milne plumb in front.
New Zealand were 188 for 8 at this point. Mitchell Santner and Tim Southee ensured they would end up with a fighting total, courtesy a ninth-wicket stand of 32, but 230 was still decidedly below par.
3rd ODI
India 337/6 (50 ov)
New Zealand 331/7 (50 ov)
India won by 6 runs
Elation, after a seventh straight bilateral ODI series win, for India. Heartbreak for a New Zealand side that has been among the best prepared and most tenacious limited-overs teams to visit the country in recent years. Why is this only a three-match series?
New Zealand came to Kanpur with a poor record in ODI deciders in India. In each of their three previous attempts, their batting had let them down: they fell short of 200 in both 1995 and 1999 and, on this day last year, imploded to 79 all out.
It's not the proudest record, and on Sunday New Zealand were set quite a task to break their decider duck in India. With Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli scoring hundreds and becoming the first ODI pair to combine in four double-century stands, India set them 338 to win. They had only completed two bigger successful chases.
That set the stage for the two teams to trade punch and counter-punch in a riveting microcosm of the entire series.
Colin Munro set things rolling by stepping out and carting the third ball of the innings over the midwicket boundary. The next three balls disappeared for fours, and Bhuvneshwar Kumar - steady, dependable Bhuvneshwar Kumar - was dazed and bemused. Trying to somehow cramp Munro for room with round-the-wicket bouncers, he sent down three wides in his third over, and by the end of his first spell was nursing figures of 0 for 51 in five.
But at the other end, Jasprit Bumrah kept things sane, extracting whatever little help a flat Green Park pitch could give him by hitting it hard with maximum backspin or, in the case of his slower offcutter, sidespin. His first spell read 4-0-12-1, Martin Guptill an excellent choice for 50th ODI wicket.
Tom Latham prepares to reverse sweep off the back of the bat Associated Press
New Zealand remained on track, with Munro and Kane Williamson adding 109 for the second wicket and moving the score to 153 for 1 in the 25th over. The counter-punch, this time, came from Yuzvendra Chahal, the only other bowler apart from Bumrah to get something out of the surface. He did this by means of hard-spun legbreaks - one drifted away from Munro and broke back in to bowl him through the gate, the other, dangled slower and wider, forced Williamson to miscue a slog-sweep. New Zealand, suddenly, were 168 for 3.
Enter Tom Latham, New Zealand's most improved and most impressive batsman on this tour. In Mumbai he had swept his way to a match-winning hundred; his innings here was perhaps even better, showcasing not just deftness against spin but also pristine timing against the fast bowlers, particularly square on the off side and off his legs. He dominated a 79-run stand with Ross Taylor, and then added 59, off just 40 balls, with the scrappy and highly effective Henry Nicholls.
When Bhuvneshwar, producing the perfect yorker on a day when little else went right for him, ended that stand, New Zealand needed 32 off 19 to win. Not the worst time for your biggest hitter to walk in.
Except it wasn't to be Colin de Grandhomme's day; his indecision played a part in Latham being run out for 65 off 52, and he didn't seem to have his hitting gloves on either. With Bhuvneshwar and Bumrah landing a dew-sodden ball there or thereabouts in the closing overs, the target slipped away from New Zealand's reach. It came down to 15 off the last over, but they were never going to get it against Bumrah in this sort of form.
New Zealand could have been chasing significantly more than 338 had their bowlers not pulled India back through the last 10 overs, in which they took five wickets while conceding only 85.
Three of those were the result of catches at long-off - a not insignificant detail, for it encapsulated the value of the fifth boundary fielder in the third Powerplay. In the last five overs of the second Powerplay, when mid-off was usually inside the circle, Rohit and Kohli had hit six fours and a six in the arc between deep extra-cover and long-off. India scored 56 in that five-over period, and Kohli and Rohit looked unstoppable.
In his 28th match, Jasprit Bumrah became the second fastest Indian to 50 wickets BCCI
But the relaxation of field restrictions gave New Zealand a bit more control. Rohit and Hardik Pandya fell to Mitchell Santner's changes of pace and trajectory while going for big hits, while a Tim Southee slower ball undid Kohli's attempt at clearing long-off. Between the end of the 40th over and Kohli's dismissal, India had only managed three boundaries. MS Dhoni and Kedar Jadhav manufactured three fours and a six thereafter, and India picked up 35 off the last 20 legal balls of their innings. Those runs would prove quite handy.
Rohit and Kohli came together in the seventh over of India's innings, when Shikhar Dhawan spooned Southee to mid-off, and immediately gave the sense of settling themselves for a long stay.
Kohli looked in rare form right from the time he walked in, flicking an off-stump ball to the right of midwicket to get off the mark and then punching Southee through the gap between cover point and extra-cover, but despite this he slipped into a sidekick role, happy to get off strike and watch Rohit do his thing. He did, however, become the fastest player to 9000 runs in one-day cricket.
Rohit's innings contained all the classic Rohit ingredients - the back-foot punches, the front-foot pulls in front of square, the drives down the ground - and also a determination to rectify the mistakes of his previous two innings. He had been out playing across the line in the first two ODIs, and didn't repeat that mistake here. In the eighth over, for instance, he got a full, middle-and-leg ball from Trent Boult, similar to the one he flicked in the air in Pune, only this time he showed the full face of the bat and picked up four to the left of mid-on.
Once he got his eye in, boundaries flowed to all parts. The fifty came up off 52 balls, the hundred off 106, and with Kohli following in his slipstream a total in the 350-370 range looked possible. India didn't get that far, but they eventually got far enough. Just about.
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