Tim Southee five-for wraps up clinical innings win as South Africa unravel again
New Zealand won the first Test by an innings and 276 runs, with the fast bowler becoming their highest Test wicket-taker at home
New Zealand won the first Test by an innings and 276 runs, with the fast bowler becoming their highest Test wicket-taker at home
Scorer: @Thilak_Rama | Commentator: Karthik Krishnaswamy
1.55pm That's that from this Test match. New Zealand are a dominant force at home, but this performance was up there with their very best in terms of just how dominant and ruthless they were. They'll have selection headaches for sure ahead of the second Test, with Trent Boult due to return, but the bigger headaches will be at the South Africa camp. A real wake-up call for them this game after their series win against India at home. They have been annihilated in one of their most one-sided defeats ever. Their bowlers were just listless for long periods of this game, their catching was far below their best, and they only put up 95 and 111. Perhaps they'll feel the only way from here is up. Anyway, Until then, it's goodbye from myself, Thilak and Srivathsa.
Matt Henry is the Player of the Match. "It's pretty special to come here and for us all to have a performance like that is brilliant. It's a great occasion and fantastic to get a win like that. It was important that we kept them playing [as often as possible]. We created pressure from both ends for a long period and I was the one that got the rewards. I'm pretty pleased with how we went. Speed is something I've been working on for a while and it just seems to be when I get my rhythm right I operate best. It was good fun [with the bat] to take it as deep as we could and put them under the pump. I think that was my first time batting [No.] 11 and I don't mind it. It's a great feeling to get this first Test win."
Tom Latham: "It's a fantastic performance. Winning the toss was a big part of it. It's probably the perfect performance. We are used to these conditions. We put their bowlers under pressure and scored at 4 an over. And we kept putting partnerships together. Matt Henry hasn't played a lot of Test cricket [but he] put the ball in the same area for long periods to get the results. We know how good South Africa are. We expect them to be at their best next game. Our focus is coming out and winning the next Test match."
Dean Elgar: "We were outskilled in all three departments and failed to execute the basics. Not a very good showing considering what we built up prior to this series. I don't like to use [ten days of quarantine] as an excuse. Maybe some people might use that as an excuse but I'm not going to. Getting outdoors a bit earlier might have been a little more effective for us, but it's hard for me to put my finger on what exactly went wrong. We've got a few days to reflect and have a few looks in the mirror. It boils down to intensity. Test cricket demands intensity and we know when we up our game we can play an extremely competitive brand of cricket. A lot went wrong. Not a lot went right. A bit of a self-reflection may not be a bad idea. We have some unplanned days off to do that. We should be a hell of a lot more competitive. Clearly what we produced out there over the last few days is not reflective of us as a squad."
Tim Southee: "We knew we had a lot of work in front of us, and it was just a clinical three days from us. It was the way we wanted to play, and the way we've played in New Zealand for a while. When you play for long enough, you can tick off a few milestones along the way, but each time you're in the same conversation with Sir Richard is a special moment [Southee is now New Zealand's leading wicket-taker in home Tests]. It's a special victory, it's a side we haven't had a lot of success against. We know they'll bounce back, but we'll enjoy what has been a pretty impressive performance from everyone."
Jason: "The Blackcaps have robbed us of 2 days of test cricket. Not impressed! "
Ashish: "Third biggest Test win for NZ in terms of innings wins (the other two were both against Zim!).. absolutely clinical stuff by the kiwis!"
Nelson : "I have never seen NZ look this dominant before. And to think it came against a team whom they hadn't beaten for nearly 20 years!"
Tim: "Is there a better bowling squad in any test team than NZ right now?" -- As far as pace resources go, they're up there with India and Australia, but in Asian conditions?
1.33pm Two days and one (extended) session. That's all it's taken New Zealand, whose fast bowlers have been absolutely magnificent in these conditions. They've continually got the ball to do something or the other, even after it looked like the pitch was flattening out considerably when they batted. Matt Henry has nine for the match, Southee has five in the second innings. Kyle Jamieson and Neil Wagner were absolutely relentless as well, and there was - as is usually the case for visiting batting sides here - no respite for South Africa.
GA Stuurman lbw b Southee 11 (38m 30b 2x4 0x6) SR: 36.66
And with that, Henry gets a chance to wrap up his 10-fer. Oh wait, it's still Southee.
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New Zealand won the first Test by an innings and 276 runs, with the fast bowler becoming their highest Test wicket-taker at home
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