West Indies 167 and 212 for 4 (Hope 116*, Greaves 55*, Duffy 2-60) trail New Zealand 231 and 466 for 8 dec (Ravindra 176, Latham 145, Roach 5-78) by 319 runs
Nathan Smith did not come out to bat and spent the entire innings off the field with a side strain. When Matt Henry left the field after the 35th over – later heading to hospital next door for scans – with West Indies 92 for 4, New Zealand may have hoped to finish off the game quickly.
Having begun with positive intent, Hope was tested periodically with the short ball, Duffy setting a square leg halfway to the rope along with a short leg and fine leg for the pull. Hope mostly swayed and ducked out of harm’s way, and on the rare occasions he was tempted into the shot, he did well to keep it down. He brought up his fourth Test century off 139 deliveries.
Duffy employed a similar plan to Greaves, whose natural game is far more instinctive. But to his credit, Greaves appeared to take a cue from Hope, choosing restraint instead. He played only when the ball was at his body, using his height to ride the bounce and fend safely. While he was a lot more enterprising against spin, the fundamental of his knock was crease occupation.
Hope and Greaves laid down the template for those who perished prior to their arrival. Tagenarine Chanderpaul and John Campbell were put through a stern new ball test by Foulkes and Henry as they repeatedly tested both their edges in an engaging first spell. Chanderpaul’s propensity to shuffle across got him into trouble more often than not, and was out to a short ball that he inside-edged to the keeper for 6 off 45 balls.
Campbell – out an over earlier – was taken out by Foulkes as he jabbed at an away-swinger with no feet movement as Bracewell took a superb low catch at second slip. In the overs prior to his dismissal, Campbell wore a blow on his boot as he smashed one back off an inside-edge, making him groan in discomfort. This may have eventually had a hand in his dismissal.
Alick Athanaze never got going, and the frustration of being unable to score had him attempt a pull, only to be rushed into the stroke by Bracewell. He only managed to toe-end a pull to mid-on. And when Roston Chase fell in eerily similar fashion to his dismissal in the first innings – nibbling at a Henry away-swinger while being rooted to the crease – West Indies were collapsing swiftly and were 72 for 4.
A four-day defeat loomed until Greaves and Hope dug in to give West Indies some hope even as New Zealand’s tired attack wheeled away in the hope of a mistake. That wasn’t to come, as West Indies took the fight into the final day even though hopes of scaling down the 531-run target they were set seem just a pipe dream for now.
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