New Zealand tighten grip, West Indies trail with two wickets down

New Zealand maintained their dominance on the second day of the Wellington Test. Despite a bright bowling performance from the West Indies seamers, the hosts declared their first innings with a lead of 73 runs. Coming out to bat late in the day, the Caribbean side lost two wickets and now trail by 41 runs.

From the start of play, New Zealand were under constant pressure from the sharp spells of the West Indies pacers. But half-centuries from the experienced Devon Conway (60) and debutant Mitchell Hay (61) ensured a safe lead for the home side.

Kemar Roach, Jayden Seales, Ojay Shields and Anderson Phillip repeatedly tested the Kiwi batters with swing and movement, but Conway punished almost every loose delivery. After the early dismissals of Tom Latham (11), Kane Williamson (37) and Rachin Ravindra (5), pressure started to build. Conway himself eventually departed, gloving a leg-side delivery to a stunning diving catch.

A 73-run stand between Daryl Mitchell (25) and Hay then took New Zealand ahead. Mitchell played a steady innings while Hay batted more aggressively. However, after hitting a boundary off a short ball, Hay miscued another short delivery from Shields and was caught.

Glenn Phillips (18) struggled against the short-ball barrage and finally fell in Roston Chase’s first over of spin. After that, Zak Foulkes (23)* and Jacob Duffy added valuable runs. Debutant Michael Rae started his Test career with four runs off an overthrow and was bowled for 13.

New Zealand’s bowlers then put West Indies under pressure within the space of just 10 overs. John Campbell was bowled by Rae, while nightwatchman Anderson Phillip was dismissed by Duffy. Brandon King (15)* and Kavem Hodge (3)* survived the remaining overs without further damage.

Despite having eight wickets in hand, the West Indies still trail by 41 runs.