Captain Brendon McCullum's blazing century gave New Zealand a brisk start on the second day of the third and final Test against Pakistan in Sharjah as the death of Australian Phillip Hughes continued to cast a gloomy shadow over the match.
New Zealand's Mark Craig has been ruled out of the rest of the Test series against India because of a side strain and will be replaced in the squad by fellow off-spinner Jeetan Patel, New Zealand Cricket (NZC) said on Monday.
New Zealand's batting tail wagged to take them to 403 in their first innings before they returned to dismiss Pakistan's openers on the second day of the second Test in Dubai on Tuesday.
Uncapped opening batsman Jeet Raval has been named in New Zealand's Test squad for their tour of southern Africa in August, New Zealand Cricket said on Friday.
Pace bowler Jackson Bird has been recalled by Australia for the first Test against New Zealand after James Pattinson was deemed not quite ready to stand up to the rigours of a full workload, captain Steve Smith said on Thursday.
James Pattinson has been recalled to Australia' starting side for the second Test against New Zealand on Saturday, replacing his injured Victorian team mate Peter Siddle.
Pant is also the first Asian wicket-keeper to take five catches in an innings on Test debut.
The only selection issue facing New Zealand as they head into the second match against India at Christchurch is likely to be whether pace bowler Kyle Jamieson, so impressive on his Test debut at the Basin Reserve, bats higher in the order. Jamieson made a big impression in the hosts' 10-wicket victory in the opener of the two-Test series, capturing 4-39 in the first innings and then scoring 44 in a rearguard action.
New Zealand all-rounder Mitchell Santner has been ruled out of the first Test against Australia and replaced by spinner Mark Craig, the team said on Tuesday.
Sarfraz Ahmed struck a defiant century before Pakistan's spinners wrecked New Zealand's top and middle order to leave the second Test in Dubai nicely poised on Thursday. New Zealand had reduced Pakistan to 287 for eight and appeared on course for a healthy first innings lead, but Sarfraz (112) added 81 runs for the last wicket with Rahat Ali to dash their hopes.
Supremely positive, aggressive and efficient, the Black Caps amply justified their status as the world's third-ranked Test side in a 1-1 draw with their hosts which fluctuated from the first ball to the last. New Zealand are a team to be reckoned with.
'A lot of our recent success has been based on the value of our number six batsman bowling some overs and we're comfortable continuing in that vein'
Australia paceman Mitchell Starc has been fined half of his match fees for throwing a ball at New Zealand batsman Mark Craig during the final day of the first Test at the Gabba.
Rookie all-rounder Mitchell Santner and veteran Grant Elliott have been rewarded for their recent strong performances by being included in New Zealand's list of centrally contracted players on Wednesday.
All-rounder James Neesham has returned to the New Zealand Test squad for their three-Test tour of India.
New Zealand ripped through England's top order to close in on a series-leveling victory as the hosts limped to 102 for five at lunch on the last day of the second and final Test on Tuesday.
Batsman Neil Broom has also been offered a contract after he was recalled to the national side following a lengthy absence to replace Ross Taylor while he recovered from eye surgery.
Kane Williamson and BJ Watling produced a world record sixth wicket partnership of 365 runs to guide New Zealand to 524 for five before captain Brendon McCullum declared their second innings closed after tea on the fourth day of the second Test.
Underlining the significance of reverse swing, India pace spearhead Mohammed Shami has admitted that the unique art is one of his primary weapons in his bowling arsenal and insisted that he constantly strives to execute it to perfection.
India beat New Zealand by 197 runs to win the opening Test in Kanpur and take a 1-0 in the 3-Test match series.
While praising Mohammed Shami's stunning comeback from injury, Indian Test skipper Virat Kohli on Friday admitted the former is a very important bowler for the team who makes it count every time he comes on the field.
Rishabh Pant became the first Indian and only the 12th player on record to hit a six as the first scoring shot of their Test career.
Adam Lyth upstaged his captain Alastair Cook by scoring his maiden Test century to lift England to 253 for five at the close on the second day of the second Test against New Zealand on Saturday.
New Zealand all-rounder Jimmy Neesham will miss the second Test against India in Kolkata due to the rib injury that kept him out of the first match in Kanpur, coach Mike Hesson said on Wednesday.
Led by skipper Virat Kohli, the Indian Test squad sans opener Lokesh Rahul and coach Anil Kumble arrived in Kolkata along with the New Zealand team ahead of second cricket Test starting on Friday. Rahul has been ruled out of the match because of a hamstring injury while Kumble is slated to join the team on Wednesday morning ahead of their practice session at Eden Gardens in the afternoon, local manager said.
Images from Day 3 of the first Test between India and New Zealand in Kanpur, on Saturday
New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson was on Thursday hit by a bug, compounding the visiting team's misery, but opener Tom Latham sounded optimistic about the batsman's availability in the second Test against India beginning in Kolkata on Friday.
The New Zealand team management knows what lies ahead for their players during the next six weeks in India, and it was no surprise that the spin troika of leg-spinner Ish Sodhi, off-spinner Mark Craig and left-arm spinner Mitchell Santner bowled a lot during a two-hour nets session at the Kotla in Delhi on Wednesday.
Spin-bowling all-rounder Mitchell Santner has been retained in New Zealand's 12-man squad for the two-match Test series against Sri Lanka after an impressive debut in the third and final Test against Australia.
India frittered away a solid start as a middle-order collapse saw them reduced to 291 for 9 on the opening day of the first cricket Test against New Zealand despite half-centuries from Murali Vijay and Cheteshwar Pujara in Kanpur on Thursday.
Exploiting a turning track, left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja scalped three batsmen in one over to finish with a five-wicket haul while Ravichandran Ashwin grabbed four wickets as India bundled out New Zealand for 262 on day three to take control of the first Test in Kanpur.
England, chasing 455 to pull off the highest successful run chase in Test history, reached 44 for no wicket at the close on a rain-hit fourth day of the second and final match of the series against New Zealand on Monday.
Former New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori could make a surprise return to the Test arena as coach Mike Hesson considers taking three spinners into the deciding clash with Pakistan in Sharjah which starts on Wednesday.
Australia coach Darren Lehmann has praised captain Steve Smith's handling of an outburst by Mitchell Starc that cost the left-arm quick half his match fee from the first Test against New Zealand.
All-rounder Corey Anderson has been ruled out of New Zealand's tour of Australia with a back injury and been replaced by Mitchell Santner, the team said on Monday.
Out-of-favour India opener Gautam Gambhir feels spinners will decide the fate of the upcoming three-match Test series between India and New Zealand, starting in Kanpur on September 22.
New Zealand will bank heavily on reverse swing to emerge from the trial by spin that awaits them in the test series in India, coach Mike Hesson said on Tuesday. Last time they hosted a team, India rolled out turning tracks and flexed their spin muscles to crush South Africa 3-0 in the four-test series last year. Kane Williamson and his men can look forward to a similar treatment in the three-test series beginning in Kanpur on Sept. 22 but Hesson sounded upbeat.
Off-spinner Mark Craig grabbed three wickets after lunch as New Zealand completed a 193-run victory, and 2-0 series sweep, shortly before tea on the final day of the second Test against Sri Lanka at the Basin Reserve on Wednesday.
Mohammad Hafeez continued his rich vein of form and closed in on his maiden double hundred in Tests as Pakistan reached 281 for three against New Zealand at the close on the first day of the third and final Test on Wednesday.
Swing and seam friendly conditions, a lack of truly scary Australian bowlers and New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum's retirement are all themes that will resonate when the first Test gets underway in Wellington on Friday.
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