Uphill battle
Black Caps have it all to do on day three of the test against Australia.
Niall Anderson in Melbourne
Two of the least fancied batsmen in the Australian line-up put the Black Caps to the sword on day two of the second test yesterday.
Travis Head and Tim Paine emphatically denied the Black Caps at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, with a 150-run stand eliminating the slim chance New Zealand had to grab a foothold in the test.
The Black Caps had battled hard early on the second day, restricting Australia’s run rate and claiming the significant scalp of Steve Smith. But coming together at 284-5, Head and Paine realistically removed New Zealand’s chances of victory.
Frustratingly, the Black Caps may be left feeling they were just one wicket away.
Compared with the likes of Smith, David Warner and Marnus Labuschagne, Head and Paine would have been considered more realistic scalps to claim early in their innings, with the pair having a combined one test century going into this encounter.
Now they have two, after Head made a classy 114, while Paine’s performance was arguably the most vital of the day, making an aggressive 79 to accelerate Australia’s scoring rate and guide them to an excellent 467.
The Black Caps were possibly left wondering what could have been when they took the last five wickets for 33 runs — albeit thanks to some lower-order slogging — but their chances of victory would have been slim regardless, based on the Australian pace attack’s fiery bowling.
Mitchell Starc hit 150km/h on several occasions as he launched down some thunderbolts, and while rookie opener Tom Blundell dealt well with his offerings, he could not do the same with the nearly-as-rapid Pat Cummins, who drew an edge, and ended his promising start on 15.
Blundell’s cameo was more than Kane Williamson offered, with the skipper mistiming a pull from James Pattinson and skying a catch to Paine to depart for nine, as the Black Caps scraped their way to 44-2 at stumps.
It wasn’t a great day for Williamson, criticised for passive captaincy decisions when the Black Caps were in the field, which included giving Blundell a three-over cameo with the ball as he lost faith in the bowling of
Mitchell Santner (0-82 from 20 overs).
Yet again, Neil Wagner was New Zealand’s spearhead, finishing with 4-83, and he had given the visitors early hope with the dismissal of Smith for 85, firing in a brutal bouncer which Smith could only fend into the gully, where Henry Nicholls took a brilliant back-handed fingertip catch.
Head survived an inside edge and a near run-out as the wicket briefly revitalised the Black Caps, but a poor Santner spell released the pressure, and with Paine pulling with glee, the pair quickly piled on the runs.
A session went by without a wicket as the duo plundered, and after nearly 44 overs of toil, Wagner finally broke through, successfully reviewing an lbw appeal to dismiss Paine.
Head brought up a deserved hundred before departing 14 runs later to Wagner, while Tim Southee ended up with three wickets as the Australian tail went down in a blaze of slogging.
The damage had been done, though, and the Black Caps’ prospects sunk further before stumps with the loss of Blundell and Williamson. Ross Taylor was nearly sent back to the pavilion as well, given out lbw to Pattinson for one, but successfully reviewed the decision to barely survive until the close.
Also clinging to survival are New Zealand’s chances of avoiding a series defeat, and it will take an almighty batting effort today to keep their hopes alive.