ICC World Test Championship.

[K]

NZ 200 up, with 3 wickets in hand.

[K]

The best batsman in the world, Kane Williamson, hits a 4 to give NZ the lead.

Still 3 wickets in hand.

A cricinfo reader notes that the scores have come from an almost identical number of overs.

[K]

Ishant gets the huge wicket of Williamson (49).

NZ 8/221 (94).

Ishant has 3 wickets.

Conway remains the only batsman so far to have scored a half-century in this Test.

[K]

The tail will probably hit out, following Jamieson's lead.

Southee, Wagner, Boult are more known for swinging the bat than patient defence.

What sort of lead can they give NZ?

[K]

...
Conway remains the only batsman so far to have scored a half-century in this Test.

Kohli, Rahane and Williamson are the three batsmen who made scores in the 40s. So the cream has risen to the top. (If you can include Conway in the cream. And if the 54 and 40s are the top.)


But if Southee's hitting comes off he could join them...

[K]

Southee plonks Ishant Sharma for 6! Valuable runs.

The lead is now 15.

If they can get a 30-run lead, it'll be quite handy.

[K]

Southee's and Jamieson's 6s have been the only two in the Test so far.

In India's innings, the normally free-wheeling Pant hit one 4, his only scoring shot in his 22-ball innings. It's so different when there's something for the bowlers, isn't it? And so much better.

[K]

But Ashwin gets Wagner for a duck.

Only Boult left now.

Three balls later, Southee reviews his dismissal and survives!

The NZ lead is 19.

[K]

Southee tonks Jadeja for 6! And then out next ball!

Just like Jamieson!

NZ all out 249 (99.2).

Lead 32.

The game is all set up! One side may well be grateful for all the lost play tomorrow afternoon. But which side?

[K]

NZ's last 3 wickets added 57 valuable runs.

India's last 3 wickets added 12 runs.


What can Boult, Southee, Wagner, Jamieson do in India's 2nd innings??

[K]

At tea, the draw is still strong favourites with the bookies (1.38 ).

Wow, I'm not so sure about that...

[Donny]

7 runs ahead, at 1/49. Rohit 22*.

[K]

At stumps, India 32 runs ahead with 8 wickets in hand.

Kohli and Pujara at the crease.

India surely won't declare, so to win they will need to be bowled out. Of course if that happens, they could lose!

[Pies4shaw]

Great to see Williamson bring his Test average in England all the way up to 28.18 with that towering 49.

The "best batsman in the World" now has an English Test average that is nearly half of Steve Bradsmith's (59.55) and - in a startling development - a Test average against India that is - wait for it - in the high 30s (37). Bradsmith, of course, only averages 72.58 against India.

What we need to restore the balance is another NZ tour or 2 of Zimbabwe or Bangladesh. Williamson has been at his best in away series in difficult conditions against those magnificent attacks.

[K]

<Blah, blah, blah>

Smith is a flat-track bully. He has a defective technique.

If Smith had to play in this Test's conditions all the time, he'd average under 30, and possibly under 20.

He goes through entire Tests without having to face a single moving (swinging or seaming) ball. Possibly entire Test series too. Did you actually see him face a single moving ball in the entire home series against India? If you did, please tell us which one(s).

I'm almost certain he didn't face a single moving ball in Sydney. Probaby not at the Gabba or MCG either.


If you want to compare the conditions, just look at Pant's performances. How many runs did he smoke in Oz? 200? 250?? In the first innings here, he had one solitary scoring shot in his 22-ball innings. That's the difference.


Smith is a flat-track bully. He has a defective technique. He's lucky he gets to play on dead pitches with Kookaburra balls that do nothing.