New Zealand stages dramatic recovery

Press, 1 April 1985, Page 44

New Zealand stages dramatic recovery

NZPA staff correspondent Port-of-Spain, Trinidad The Wellington medium pace bowler, Ewen Chatfield, smashed the West Indies middle order batting with four wickets, and John Wright and Jeff Crowe gave the New Zealand innings a bold start on the second day of the first test.

Things did not go completely New Zealand’s way and at stumps it was 166 for four in reply to the West Indies first-innings total of 307.

Jeff Crowe (64) and Wright (40) provided the foundation of New Zealand’s reply with a 109-run partnership for the second wicket, coming together with the score at one after Ken Rutherford, in his first test, was out for a duck. At stumps, the captain, Geoff Howarth (25) and Jeremy Coney (16) were unbeaten after putting together a tenacious 34 runs.

Chatfield was the man who got New Zealand off to a good start yesterday with four wickets for 16 runs in an eight-over spell to scuttle the West Indies middle order. Hadlee took two wickets to add to the pair he got on the first day, including the important wicket of the West Indies captain, Viv Richards, known locally as the Master Blaster.

It was Richards, in blasting form, who took the home side past 300 with 43 this morning as the last six wickets fell for 76 runs. Resuming at 231 for four, Gus Logie and Richards added only five runs before Chatfield struck, bowling Logie for 24. Richards and Jeff Dujon put on 31 before Chatfield bowled the wicketkeeper for 15. Dujon was beaten outside the off stump and played a half shot to the next ball and edged it on to the stumps. Two balls later Chatfield picked up his third wicket of the morning, when the substitute fielder, John Bracewell, took a fine low catch at first slip to dismiss Malcolm Marshall without

scoring. And two overs later Chatfield sent Roger Harper back, also for a duck, when Howarth took a simple catch at mid-off.

At that stage Richards was blasting away trying to keep the West Indies total ticking over as he lost partners.

Richards made 57, but was riding his luck. Martin Crowe caught him off Lance Cairns, but fell over the midwicket boundary and Richards passed 50 with a six. In the next over Crowe dropped him, running in from the cover boundary after Richards had skied a ball from Chatfield. Richards was eventually out at 302 when Hadlee bowled him with a ball which came back.

Chatfield, who bowled so economically on the first day without reward, had the best figures — four for 51 from 28 overs.

Wright and Rutherford had to spend 10 minutes at the crease before lunch, and Wright scored a single off the three overs. In the second over after lynch Rutherford was surprised by a rising ball from Marshall which came off the top of the bat into the hands of Desmond Haynes at short-leg.

Wright and Jeff Crowe started cautiously, but Crowe took advantage of the attacking field, which included three slips, two gulleys and a short-leg, and crashed the ball for boundaries with straight drives.

He scored nine fours in his 50, his fifth test half century, taking just 48 balls. He was also helped by a five, which included four overthrows. Ten minutes before tea the off-spinner, Roger Harper, was introduced into the attack, but Crowe and Wright saw New Zealand safely to the break at 95. Crowe hit a four after tea to bring up their 100 partnership, in 118 minutes, but became the first of two victims falling to spin.

Martin Crowe was the other New Zealand wicket to fall, out cheaply for three, lbw to Michael Holding. New Zealand was 113 for three at that stage and Howarth joined Wright. They took the score to 132 before Wright edged Harper to Richie Richardson at first slip.

Howarth, in desperate need of runs, looked jittery at first, but became more confident the longer he was at the crease and began picking off runs from Harper, including a welltimed square drive. Twentyfive is his highest score in six innings on the tour. He has been batting for 96 minutes. He had one or two letoffs, edging both Holding and Harper just short of the slips, but he was getting behind the ball and will no doubt be looking for a good partnership with Coney today. New Zealand had a tremendous start on the first day when it had the home

side at nine for two, but a record-breaking 185 third wicket partnership between the opener, Gordon Greenidge (100) and Richie Richardson (78), allowed the West Indies to escape. It took the gentle medium pace bowler, Coney, to break the stand. He bowled Richardson, and Greenidge followed soon after and from 194 for two the West Indies finished the day at 231 for 4. WEST INDIES First innings C. G. Greenidge b Boock. 100 D. L. Haynes c Rutherford b Hadlee 0 L. A Gomes c Smith b Hadlee 0 R. Richardson c Hadlee b Coney 78 I. V. A. Richards b Hadlee. 57 A. L. Logie b Chatfield. . 24 P. J. Dujon b Chatfield. . 15 M. D. Marshall c sub b Chatfield 0 R. A. Harper c Howarth b Chatfield 0 M. A. Holding lbw b Hadlee 12 J. Garner not out 0 Extras (b 1, lb 16, nb 4) . 21 Total 307 Fall: 5,9, 194, 196, 236, 267, 267, 269, 302. Bowling: Hadlee, 24.3, 6, 82, 4, (2 nb); Chatfield, 28, 11, 51, 4; Cairns, 26, 3, 93, 0, (2 nb); Boock, 19, 5, 47, 1; Coney, 9,3, 17, 1. NEW ZEALAND First innings J. G. Wright c Richardson b Harper 40 K. R. Rutherford c Haynes b Marshall 0 J. J. Crowe c and b Harper 64 M. D. Crowe lbw b Holding 3 G. P. Howarth not out . . 25 J. V. Coney not out ... . 16 Extras (lb 5, nb 13). . . 18 Total (for 4 wkts) 166 Fall: 1, 110, 113, 132. Bowling: Marshall, 14, 1, 51, 1, (8 nb); Garner, 11, 4, 26, 0, (5 nb); Holding, 14, 2, 55, 1; Harper, 16, 8, 23, 2; Richards, 1, 0,6, 0.