After having secured the ongoing Test series, the visiting side England won the toss and opted to field first on Day 1 of the third Test. Looking at how the opening day panned out, both sides were even stevens as it turned out to be a see-saw battle. Fascinatingly, the first over of the day accounted for eight runs practically but technically was a maiden.
Matthew Potts got the ball to swing to Tom Latham, the deviation being a bit too much at times; leading to a couple of boundaries. Will Young, the Player of the Series against India, was a bit slow to start. By the end of the first session, the Kiwis were well-positioned at 93 for the loss of no wickets. Notably, out of the 42 runs scored by Young, at least 40 of them came through the boundaries.
Meanwhile, England pacer Brydon Carse’s sixth over was creamed for 12 runs courtesy of Latham’s delightful strokeplay. However, Gus Atkinson got the better of Young the very next over as the batter departed without adding to his score at Lunch. Carse opened his account by scalping Rachin Ravindra just before the Tea break. Six overs into the final session, veteran batter Kane Williamson was dismissed in a rather bizarre manner while being just six runs shy of his half-century.
Daryl Mitchell got off the mark on the 20th delivery he faced, as New Zealand aimed to kick on. However, his and then Glenn Phillips getting dismissed turned the balance in the visitors’ favour. While Mitchell Santner was going on his merry way and adding to the scoreboard, there were a few batters who were falling at the other end.
Tim Southee who was playing his farewell Test, played an entertaining 10-ball 23-run cameo to provide the hosts a much-needed boost in their revival. The all-rounder brought up his fifty off the very last delivery of the Day with a maximum, to sum up a truly mixed day for the Black Caps, who finished the day with 315/9 on the board on the opening day of the third Test.
Meanwhile, here’s how the fans reacted to Day 1 of the third NZ vs ENG Test:
Gus Atkinson has 50 Test match wickets for England! 🏴
Made his debut in July 🤯✨ #NZvENG #GusAtkinson pic.twitter.com/cp4PNg4LKX
— ɴɪᴊɪɴ ᴊᴏʜɴʏ (@johnynijin) December 14, 2024
An emotional moment as Tim Southee walks onto the field with his daughter for the final time in Test cricket.#TimSouthee pic.twitter.com/h7rKcsE6sy
— CricTracker (@Cricketracker) December 14, 2024
Tim Southee got a guard of honour from England’s players as he walked out to bat during New Zealand’s first innings in Hamilton #NZvENG pic.twitter.com/yIpnJEmtxL
— Khawar Zaman (@Khawarzaman8712) December 14, 2024
A Guard Of Honour For Tim Southee.
A Legendary Test Career of a Legendary player comes to an end! 🙇♂️#NZvENG #INDvsAUS pic.twitter.com/9xNzQBSHaZ
— Misran Ahmad 🏏Shahzadain 🇵🇰 (@MisranAhmad19) December 14, 2024
Even stevens after day 1 of #NZvENG Test. NZ will be relieved to have passed 300 after middle order collapse. Eng will feel they could have bowled NZ out but it could have been much worse when hosts were 105-0#Cricket
— MediumPaceDobbler (@MediumPaceDobb1) December 14, 2024
Only watched the opening session of the game. I was pleased with the score and the end of play, but yet again our bowlers struggled to get rid of the tail. Were they bowling short again? #NZvENG
— Official Michael (@Horwichbloke19) December 14, 2024
MOST SIXES IN TEST CRICKET:
Ben Stokes – 133 sixes.
Brendon McCullum – 107 sixes.
Adam Gilchrist – 100 sixes.
Tim Southee – 98* sixes.
Chris Gayle – 98 sixes.#TimSouthee #NZvENG pic.twitter.com/yVGtYjrbfv
— Hritik Bali (@hritik_bali) December 14, 2024
Why does it feel like NZ to ENG’s Bazball is like what SL is to IND #Cricket #NZvENG
— Akash (@Akash___) December 14, 2024
Tim Southee with his family in his Final match today at Hamilton.
– EMOTIONAL MOMENTS FOR HIM & HIS FAMILY. 🥺❤️#TimSouthee #NZvsENG #NZvENG #Gabba #GabbaTest #AUSvsIND #AUSvIND #INDvAUS #INDvsAUS #KLRahul #ViratKohli pic.twitter.com/2DnSOUez5b
— Monish (@Monish09cric) December 14, 2024