New Zealand Openers Rewrite Test Records Against West Indies

Cricket action
Tom Latham and Devon Conway have given the Kiwis a dominant lead.

Final Test, Mount Maunganui (day four of five)

  • New Zealand 575-8 dec: Conway 227, Latham 137 and 306-2 dec: Latham 101, Conway 100
  • West Indies 420 all out: Hodge 123 and 43-0

New Zealand's Tom Latham and Devon Conway etched their names in the record books by becoming the initial opening pair in Test cricket to hit hundreds in each innings of a match, setting the West Indies a massive 462-run target for victory.

Latham scored 137 and 101 in this third and final Test, while Conway built upon his mammoth 227 in the first innings with a composed 100 in the second.

The pair had constructed a massive 323-run stand in the first innings, amassing 515 runs overall—a unprecedented total for the highest aggregate an opening pair in a single Test match.

Furthermore, Conway entered rare company in Test history to achieve a double century and a hundred in the same match.

He followed legends like Greg Chappell, Sunil Gavaskar, Graham Gooch, Brian Lara, and Kumar Sangakkara in securing this extraordinary feat.

Match Context

Earlier on day four, the Windies were bowled out for 420, facing a deficit of 155 runs, before Latham and Conway resumed their partnership.

Along with knocks from Kane Williamson (40) and Rachin Ravindra (46), the New Zealand openers propelled their side to 306-2 before a declaration, leaving the visitors a near-impossible target of 462 to win and level the series.

At the close of play, West Indies openers had reached 43-0, with John Campbell digging in to score two runs from 50 balls, while Brandon King made 37.

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