MOUNT MAUNGANUI: Rac­hin Ravindra and Kane Willi­amson ground out unbeaten centuries as New Zealand punished a second-string South Africa on the opening day of the first Test at Mount Maunganui on Sunday.

A Proteas side featuring six debutants paid heavily for deciding to bowl and spilling chances as the home side reached 258-2 at stumps.

Williamson was at his gritty best in reaching 112 off 259 balls, his 30th Test century, while Ravindra reached three figures for the first time and was unbeaten on 118 from 211 deliveries.

The pair combined for a stand of 219, wearing down an attack which began the day brightly after captain Neil Brand, on debut, opted to field on a green-tinged Bay Oval pitch.

South Africa made immediate inroads in the second over when Tshepo Moreki, one of six debutants in the Proteas team, removed Devon Conway leg before with his first delivery in Test cricket.

The more experienced Dane Paterson had the other Black Caps opener, Tom Blundell, edge behind for 20 but that only brought the in-form Ravindra and Williamson together.

Showing great patience as South Africa tried to suffocate them with accurate seam-bowling, the pair took their time to score and were still safely at the crease at the close of play.

Williamson did get frustrated at one point in his innings and Ruan de Swardt (0-24) will count himself unlucky that the master batsman’s attempt to slog the seamer over the covers did not end up in the hands of Edward Moore.

The 33-year-old was soon cracking another four to reach the half century mark for the 34th time in his 97th Test, however, and he converted it into another century with his 13th boundary.

Ravindra, 24, also got a life off the luckless de Swardt when he was on 80, his top edge flying towards Duanne Olivier at backward square leg only for the fielder to misjudge it.

The all-rounder was playing his first Test for two years and made it one to remember when he reached the hundred mark half an hour before stumps.

Moreki deserved better than his 1-81 and all four seamers might have welcomed Neil Brand, who was also making his Test debut as captain, offering his left-arm spinner before the final session.

SCOREBOARD

NEW ZEALAND (1st Innings):

T. Latham c Fortuin b Paterson 20

D. Conway lbw b Moreki 1

K. Williamson not out 112

R. Ravindra not out 118

EXTRAS (LB-1, NB-4, W-2) 7

TOTAL (for two wickets, 86 overs) 258

STILL TO BAT: D. Mitchell, T. Blundell, G. Phillips, M. Santner, K. Jamieson, M. Henry, T. Southee

FALL OF WICKETS: 1-2 (Conway), 2-39 (Latham)

BOWLING: Olivier 19-3-62-0 (1w, 2nb), Moreki 22-2-81-1 (1w, 2nb), Paterson 22-3-59-1, de Swardt 14-4-24-0, Brand 9-0-31-0

SOUTH AFRICA: N. Brand, E. Moore, R. van Tonder, Z. Hamza, D. Bedingham, K. Petersen, R. de Swardt, C. Fortuin, D. Olivier, T. Moreki, D. Paterson

UMPIRES: Ahsan Raza (Pakistan), Richard Kettleborough (England)

TV UMPIRE: Richard Illingworth (England)

MATCH REFEREE: Javagal Srinath (India)

Published in Dawn, February 5th, 2024