Cricket: Kyle Jamieson shines for Black Caps on day one against Pakistan

There is an emotion unlike anything else in cricket when you see a fast bowler at the top of his game; a fast that seems to take a wicket with each delivery.

That sense of anticipation only increases when the two guys tasked with preventing that from happening are in good touch and looking to score first and defend second.

It’s a rare combination of events, but for a 40-minute period in the second session of the second test between New Zealand and Pakistan, that’s exactly what the crowd got, and it was pure theater.

The day ended with Pakistan with 297 points, a satisfying total given they were 83-4 before lunch.

Botanic Gardens End’s Kyle Jamieson was phenomenal, using his tall body and high action to hit lengths that challenged hitters to press forward while also threatening to break fingers.

Azhar Ali and, in particular, Mohammad Rizwan were not prepared to play the victims. Azhar used to deftly land and run, his experience told him that the non-forward winger was the best place to play against Jamieson.

Rizwan sought to lead the attack on Jamieson. He drove through decks, played and missed, cut point, let strangers go.

It was impossible to look away, like Iñigo Montoya versus Westley in The Princess Bride, every move, every thrust, parry and counterattack had a purpose.

Jamieson ultimately won the battle, Rizwan edged out BJ Watling by 61, continuing a series in which he has passed 50 on all three strokes and has sported a class above most of those above him in order.

Jamieson, who finished the day 5-69, his third five-wicket bag in testing, couldn’t explain Azhar, however.

The 83-game, more than 6,000-run veteran was playing a classic of his own, albeit perhaps with less panache than his captain. He had some luck, as you should be when hitting on the first morning of a test in New Zealand, but he struck the perfect balance between attack and defense.

In the end, his innings ended meekly, pressing Matt Henry and beating Ross Taylor, but his 93 was an accurate demonstration of how to hit in tough conditions.

Those below them benefited from the old ball. Faheem Ashraf survived a mere chance in four and went to 48 before overtaking Jamieson with Taylor (who was to blame for his disappointment) and Zafar Gohar in debut made his way to 34 before succumbing to a Tim Southee bumper. in the first over of the second new ball.

Trent Boult picked up his first, Shaheen Shah Afridi (four) in the next over and concluded the innings with Naseem Shah caught by Tom Latham in the briefs for a breezy 12.

The level of comfort Pakistanis had in the fold was surprising, but that was in keeping with a day that defied expectations.

The first two eye openers occurred before a ball was thrown.

For the first time this summer, an opposition captain called incorrectly and New Zealand used a wicket for the first time that was green, but perhaps not as lush as expected.

The second surprise came with the appointment of the teams. Pakistan left Yasir Shah’s 227 wickets on the sideline, preferring stronger hitting from Orthodox left arm spinner Zafar Gohar. Mitchell Santner’s latest heroics weren’t enough to convince the coach and captain that he had a role to play, as Daryl Mitchell won the off-road job and Henry vacated Neil Wagner.

It turned out that Henry had the opportunity to impact from the first ball of the game. Shan Masood pushed to square his leg, ran, and was sent back, but Henry missed with the stranded opener.

Shan may have been eager to go off the mark after falling in love with a duck in the second inning on Mt Maunganui and it turned out that the sense of unease was well founded. The eighth ball he faced was a late-swaying, toe-crushing Southee yorker that created a triple indignity: it knocked Shan down to the grass, saw him delivered by a duck, and encouraged contemptible criticism.

Azhar and Abid Ali enjoyed a 50-run stamina before Abid edged Jamieson past Southee on slips.

Haris Sohail (one) half left, half play and completely covered when the ball slid from the face of his bat towards Henry Nicholls in the ravine.

Fawad Alam, the creator of the first round of the century, received the ball of the season to leave the visitors reeling 83-4.

Enter Rizwan and an exciting battle of wills and skills.