5 months ago
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An epic 202 not retired by Justin Greaves and a stubborn enactment relation by Kemar Roach saw the West Indies salvage a valiant gully successful the archetypal Test against New Zealand successful Christchurch connected Saturday (December 6, 2025).
Set a colossal people of 531, 113 much than the existent grounds for a palmy fourth-innings chase, the West Indies were 457-6 astatine the end, the second-highest Test 4th innings.
Greaves battled for astir 10 hours and faced 388 deliveries, bringing up his maiden treble period successful the penultimate over.
Roach was unbeaten connected his Test champion of 58 which included facing 72 dot balls erstwhile helium was connected 53.
The brace enactment connected a gutsy 180 for the seventh wicket.
"Kemar, the elder pro, guided maine each the way," said man-of-the-match Greaves.
"Coach told maine erstwhile you get in, enactment in. To beryllium a portion of past is exciting, but for me, it's 1 time astatine a time.
"For us, it was conscionable astir getting into the past session."
Given the magnitude of the chase, the West Indies saw the gully arsenic a triumph portion New Zealand felt they had lost.
"I'd accidental it feels similar a win. The guys are proud," West Indies skipper Roston Chase said, adding they felt they the crippled was theirs going into the last session.
"But it didn't rather enactment retired that mode that they (Greaves and Roach) wanted truthful erstwhile it came to the past hr we had a treatment and they said they would conscionable play it out."
However, the temper was not buoyant successful the New Zealand camp.
"When you person a gully successful that manner wherever you cognize you're truthful adjacent to winning it does person that (losing) feeling," skipper Tom Latham said.
A gully seemed a distant imaginable for the tourists erstwhile the apical bid failed to occurrence yet again and they slumped to 72-4.
But New Zealand were down connected occurrence powerfulness arsenic injuries to Matt Henry and Nathan Smith reduced their gait onslaught successful the 2nd innings to conscionable Jacob Duffy and Zak Foulkes.
Both were playing lone their 2nd Test.
The placid transportation was besides of small assistance to the spinners, allowing Shai Hope and Greaves to currency successful for the 5th wicket amassing 196 runs successful a 64-over stand.
The West Indies resumed the last time astatine 212-4 with a assured Hope and Greaves adding 23 successful six overs of rotation earlier blunting the new-ball onslaught for much than 12 overs, earlier Hope was dismissed for 140.
A abbreviated shot from Duffy extracurricular the limb stump tempted Hope to hook but the shot climbed, grazed the mitt and a diving Tom Latham took a stunning one-handed drawback to implicit the dismissal.
Tevin Imlach came and went quickly, lbw to Foulkes for four, and New Zealand felt the inaugural had swung their mode again with the West Indies 277-6.
But erstwhile Roach joined Greaves the pendulum swung backmost the different mode arsenic West Indies reached 399-6 astatine tea, needing a further 132 with 4 wickets remaining if they were to execute a historical triumph successful the last session.
Luck was with Roach, who received 5 lives.
He was dropped connected 30 and 47 and survived a run-out erstwhile the propulsion went wide of the stumps.
He was fixed not retired to an lbw entreaty and again for a caught behind, some disconnected Michael Bracewell, erstwhile tv replays showed helium was retired some times.
Duffy was New Zealand's astir palmy bowler with 3-122 to spell with his 5 wickets successful the archetypal Test.
The 2nd Test starts successful Wellington connected Wednesday.
