Return
to Story Page
To print: Select File and then Print from your
browser's menu
REUTERS
AUCKLAND, FEB 27: Gary Kirsten and Daryll Cullinan punished New Zealand for deciding to bowl first by guiding South Africa to a formidable 245 for two wickets at close of play on the first day of the opening Test at Eden Park today.
Kirsten made light work of an awkward, rain interrupted day to equal Dudley Nourse's South African record of nine Test centuries, sharing an unbroken third wicket stand of 148 with Cullinan and finishing the day on 109 (240b, 309m, from 240 balls in five hours and nine minutes.
Cullinan, always a stylist, overcame a predictably slow surface to reach 50 from just 79 balls with eight fours. He maintained an aggressive approach to finish on 85 (148b, 11x4, 1x6), which included a pulled six off left-arm spinner Daniel Vettori.
The tourists had reached 71 without loss in the 90 minutes possible before lunch but opener Herschelle Gibbs was dismissed three overs after the restart thanks to a fine delivery from Vettori, the best bowler on the day.
Initially beaten in the flight,Gibbs left the ball only to discover that it was an arm ball that drifted far enough into his pads to clip off stump.
Jacques Kallis (7) was trapped lbw by Simon Doull.
Kiwi captain Dion Nash's decision to bowl, controversial to say the least, was prompted by grey and overcast skies in the morning but the expected swing never materialised and there was precious little seam movement. Left arm seamer Geoff Allott came closest to a dismissal when a full-blooded off drive from Kirsten flew over the head of third slip to the boundary. Intermittent squalls interrupted play five times through the day.
SCOREBOARD
SOUTH AFRICA (1st innings): Gary Kirsten batting 109, Herschelle Gibbs b Vettori 34, Jacques Kallis lbw Doull 7, Darryl Cullinan batting 85; Extras (4b, 5lb, 1nb): 10. Total (for two wickets, 80 overs): 245.Fall of wickets: 1-76, 2-97
Bowling: Doull 18-4-40-1; Allott 13-1-64-0; Nash 13-4-43-O; Vettori 24-5-58-1; Harris 9-3-12-0; McMillan 3-0-19-0.
Copyright © 1999 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
------------------------------------------------------------
This story was printed from Net Express located at http://www.expressindia.com. Net Express provides a portal to India, with news from The Indian Express and The Financial Express along with sites on travel and tourism, the entertainment industry, the power sector, the environment and much more.
------------------------------------------------------------