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New Zealand gained the upper hand on the first of the third Test against West Indies as openers Tom Latham and Devon Conway formed an enormous partnership of 323 runs. It was a terrific batting display from the duo and they toiled with the opposing bowling attack throughout the day. The visitors managed to break the partnership by the end of the day, but they couldn't stop the Kiwis from finishing off on a commanding position.
Latham makes brave call at the toss
After winning the toss, skipper Tom Latham opted to bat first in Mount Maunganui. This was quite a bold decision as not only did the pitch look green, but also because this was the first time since 2011 that a New Zealand skipper had decided to bat first after winning the toss in a home Test series. However, the brave call would eventually pay off big time for the Black Caps and Latham himself was at the center of it all.
The opening pair of Latham and Conway began the first session on a strong note and ensured that the side didnt lose any wickets. They put up 83 runs on the board by Lunch, but their pace of scoring runs changed drastically in the secopnd session. Turns out that Latham's call of choosing to bat first was the right one as the pitch may have appeared to be lively at first, but was much drier underneath and didn't provide a lot of help for the bowlers.
New Zealand piled on runs during the second session as both Latham and Conway went on to reach their 15th and 6th hundreds in the format respectively. While the former took up a rather defensive approach, the latter didn't waste the chance of pouncing on the loose deliveries. For the hosts, this was the first time since 2019 that both the openers went on to hit hundreds in a Test innings. This was also the second-highest opening stand ever formed by a Kiwi pair in Tests and the highest one formed in red-ball cricket in 2025 so far.
Latham loses wicket in last few overs
West Indies eventually managed to get the breakthrough thanks to Kemar Roach, who dismissed Latham for 137 runs with less than four overs left to spare on the first day. New Zealand decided to send out Jacob Duffy as a night-watchman and he remained unbeaten on 9 while Conway also remained unbeaten on 178 as they wrapped up the first day on 334/1. It remains to be seen if the West Indian bowlers will manage to make a comeback on Day 2 of the third and final Test of the series that the Black Caps currently lead by 1-0.
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