Live Cricket Updates: Black Caps v West Indies, First Test, Day Three from Seddon Park

All the test cricket action between the Black Caps and the West Indies.

New Zealand batsmen have given their bowlers the gift of time and they may need it all for a win after the West Indies counterattacked admirably at the end of the second day.

Led by Kane Williamson’s magnificent 251, his third century double and highest score, New Zealand declared at 519-7 shortly after tea.

For stumps, the West Indies had traded some test bowling to finish at 49 without losing after 26 overs.

All four players had their moments, but Kraigg Brathwaite (20) and, more surprisingly, John Campbell (22), made a solid case for a draw. Neither of them played a shot to inspire the poets, although Campbell boldly took Tim Southee’s hook, easily clearing the fence off the fine leg.

Kyle Jamieson created the only moment when a referee was asked a serious question. Wayne Knights, in his first test, correctly turned down the opportunity to raise his finger.

Southee and Trent Boult threw the ball early, sometimes past the bat, but they would have been disappointed that the Kookaburra hadn’t misbehaved a bit longer.

Neil Wagner was the most threatening. He charged with typical enthusiasm, but was uncharacteristically longer until the end of the day when he circled again. Immediately the tone of the contest changed, with a leg slide, short leg, two men back on the hook, and a fly slide.

Campbell, comfortable until then, suddenly found himself defending the ball from his chest. We could see a lot of that for the rest of the test unless the tone characteristics change dramatically.

This isn’t a wicket where it’s easy to score freely, especially early in your innings, but it’s also not one where you can expect to roll through the lineup, although it might have looked that way when the covers were removed yesterday.

The surface is not abrasive enough to bring the reverse swing into play, there is no specialized spinner (and a little twist) so New Zealand’s strong five seam attack will have to work hard and rely on the strange mistake of the batting criteria to find the 20 wickets.

One man who didn’t make too many mistakes was Williamson. It was better on the second day, as expected when the green grass burned and turned brown.

A punch to the rear foot took him to three figures, the twenty-second time he has reached that milestone, and he continued serenely thereafter.

Batting was a different art at the other extreme. Ross Taylor finished early for 38 and Henry Nicholls added another failure to a series of low scores.

In a vacuum, Nicholls’ expansive momentum, caught on the second try in Jason Holder’s slides, seemed wildly undisciplined compared to the monastic denial displayed by Tom Latham and Williamson, but that’s unfair.

The southpaw had entrenched himself in all 32 balls prior to that and probably felt like he had earned the right to attempt to access the coverage limit. It was a technical error, more than a mental one.

Tom Blundell provided unconditional support during a 72-run stoppage, but 14 of 63 balls tell a story. Shannon Gabriel, who has developed a big heart to match his physique, snapped a quick one through his defenses to catch him up front. Donald Trump had a better chance of overturning the election result than Blundell’s review of succeeding.

Daryl Mitchell looked comfortable enough going nine-of-37, but missed softly, before Williamson found Jamieson (51 wasn’t) a hitter to make things look almost as easy as him.

What can you say about Williamson that doesn’t feel like repeating an endless list of virtues?

About the only thing he doesn’t get enough credit for is his hit rate, but he can score quickly as he showed by going from 151 to 251 in just 106 balls.

That’s when he dug Roston Chase deep in front of Alzarri Joseph and amid the disappointment at not clearing the rope there was probably relief as well.

Otherwise, Williamson might have been left with the option of sticking with a triple ton or declaring. You know that I would have chosen the latter and you know that it would have disappointed everyone who was watching.

You can’t please everyone, even if Williamson comes closer than most.