After a slow and steady first day’s play in New Zealand’s capital, day two all went by in a bit of a rush.
The Black Caps struggled to take one wicket, while Australia ripped through all 10 in double quick time, and even had time to add a player to the team of ducks.
Here are the five quick hits from day two of the first Test in Wellington.
1. Australia’s perfect ten(th) wicket partnership Cameron Green and Josh Hazlewood tormented the New Zealand attack.
Heading to the Basin Reserve on day two, New Zealand would have hoped to wrap the Australian innings up pretty quickly.
So they would have been furious at the way things turned out, as Cameron Green and Josh Hazlewood made a mockery of the host’s attack with a stunning tenth-wicket partnership that dominated the morning session.
Despite turning down singles throughout the first hour, Green kept the scoreboard ticking over with some massive shots over the rope to move past his previous highest Test score of 114.
The partnership passed 50 in just 62 balls. It became the highest partnership of the innings shortly after drinks.
Then Green smashed his way to a maiden Test 150, Australia’s total went past 350 and Hazlewood developed into his work by playing cover drives reminiscent of a vintage Matthew Hayden.
One can only imagine the frustration the home bowlers felt when the partnership passed a century — only the 28th time the tenth wicket has produced a century partnership in Tests.
The eventual tally of 116 was a record for the tenth partnership in Tests against New Zealand and Australia’s fourth-highest of all time, but the pair’s tormenting of the Kiwi attack was made all the more galling by the fact that the game was steadily drifting away from the hosts after a grinding and battling effort of day one.
2. A trainwreck run-out costs Black Caps Kane Williamson was farciacally run out for a two-ball duck.
A significant percentage of the Basin Reserve crowd would have arrived on day two with hopes of watching Kane Williamson bat. And in fairness, they all got that chance. For two balls.
His brief stay was made much worse by the manner of his dismissal, an embarrassing run-out that neither him or his batting partner Will Young came out of without blame.
Williamson bunted his second ball straight to Marnus Labuschagne at mid-off and set off for an ill-advised run. He also decided to run down the same side of the pitch as Young, and in a moment of panic, the pair both stepped in the same direction and collided full-chested.
Bowler Mitchell Starc was caught in the crossfire, flinching as the batters made a meal of things behind him. On first viewing it may have seemed as though Starc contributed to the mix up, but he was but an innocent bystander.
For his part, Labuschagne absolutely blasted the stumps down and there’s no guarantee Williamson would have made his ground even if he hadn’t belted into his teammate. It all made what was already a disappointing duck an absolute disaster for Williamson and New Zealand.
3. Wickets in clumps Mitchell Marsh celebrates a wicket on day two at Basin Reserve.
New Zealand had a shorter middle session to contend with, and badly needed a period of stability to wrestle some momentum back in the game.
Outside of two brief bursts, the Kiwis did a decent job of that. Unfortunately those two brief bursts pretty much entirely destroyed their innings before it had even begun.
Tom Latham, Williamson and Rachin Ravindra all fell without adding a single run, while about an hour later New Zealand lost Daryl Mitchell and Will Young in successive balls. It left the Black Caps reeling at 5-29, and miles behind in the game.
After a post-tea fightback, again the clump of wickets struck again. New Zealand lost Tom Blundell and Scott Kuggeleijn in the same Nathan Lyon over — the third time in the innings New Zealand had lost multiple wickets for the addition of no runs.
4. Hitting out pays off Tom Blundell helped launch the Kiwis’ counterattack.
On a lively pitch, which this Basin Reserve deck undoubtedly is, most batters have tried to dig in and survive to craft an innings.
It’s not often worked.
However, those that have been willing to play their shots a bit have had a fair amount of joy, from Mitch Marsh (40 off 39 on day one) to Cameron Green (174 at a strike rate of 63.27) in Australia’s innings, right through to the Kiwis on day two.
Tom Blundell and Glenn Phillips both counter attacked superbly from the moment they came together at 5-29, passing their 50-run partnership at better than a run a ball before Blundell was out to Lyon.
Phillips continued on his way, scoring 50 in 43 balls as he was joined by Matt Henry, who was not going to go without a fight, hitting four sixes in his innings of 42 off just 34 balls.
5. Smith joins the flock of ducks Steve Smith joined team duck late on day two.
There are an awful lot of names for a group of ducks.
A gaggling? A flock? A raft? A brace? A team, even.
Well, whatever it’s called, there were plenty quacking their way around the Basin Reserve on day two.
Steve Smith pushed at a wide ball outside off stump, getting an inside edge onto the base of his leg stump to fall for a three-ball duck and give Tim Southee his first wicket in the match.
He joined Kane Williamson, Rachin Ravindra and Scott Kuggeleijn in the team of ducks, and added another question mark about his position at the top of the order.
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