[ad_1]
Black Caps quicker Neil Wagner pitched with a fractured toe on the third morning of Test 1 against Pakistan, as his teammates combined to reduce the visitors to 62-5 in response to their total. of 431 in the first entry.
Wagner was cleared to continue bowling after breaking his fourth toe on his right foot when he was hit by a ball from Shaheen Shah Afridi while batting on the second day, provided he could tolerate the pain.
He went four overs on Monday without taking a wicket, but his sewing partners Trent Boult, Kyle Jamieson and Tim Southee made big strides to put the Black Caps on top at Bay Oval on Mount Maunganui.
Phil Walter / Getty Images
New Zealand’s Neil Wagner hits on the second day of Test 1 against Pakistan. He has a broken toe, but he will continue to play.
Jamieson was the first to strike on day three after taking the first wicket at the end of day two, pitching Abid Ali for 25 after Pakistan had added just nine runs to their nightly total of 30-1 in the first 12 overs of the day.
READ MORE:
* Cricket: Kane Williamson and Suzie Bates get accolades from ICC’s team of the decade
Black Caps vs Pakistan: Kane Williamson satisfied with his effort in the first ‘difficult’ innings
* Black Caps vs Pakistan: Hosts post a solid first inning total before taking early wicket
* Black Caps vs Pakistan: Ross Taylor returns to form after marking a ‘special occasion’
Boult then claimed his first wicket when he had night watchman Mohammad Abbas caught in the first slip by Ross Taylor, the Black Caps veteran’s 150th test catch, by five.
Southee got in the act 20 minutes before tea, getting Azhar Ali to jab one out of the five and give BJ Watling a catch behind stumps, but only after the Black Caps reviewed the original decision not to come out.
Four balls later he took out Haris Sohail, who sent a catch to Henry Nicholls in the ravine and was on his way for three.
Those strikes were Southee’s 297 and 298 Proving Grounds, putting him within two of joining Sir Richard Hadlee and Daniel Vettori as the only New Zealanders to take 300.
Wagner received treatment from Black Caps physio, Tommy Simsek, after taking the foot blow on Sunday, but kept going and was the last out of 19.
He was not with his teammates when they came out to defend their 431 total, but after sending some deliveries into the nets, he was allowed to retake the field, where he threw three overs before stumps.
On Monday morning, a Black Caps spokesperson said: “An X-ray has confirmed a nondisplaced fracture of Neil Wagner’s fourth toe, but a doctor has cleared him to play as long as he can tolerate pain.
