[www.inewsguyana.com] – Rookie Jermaine Blackwood struck a half-century on debut, while veteran left-hander Shiv Chanderpaul achieved another personal milestone as West Indies batted themselves into a commanding position on the third day of the second cricket Test against New Zealand in Trinidad.
Jamaican Blackwood stroked an attractive 63 and Chanderpaul, 47, two innings that allowed West Indies to pile up 460 all out in response to the Black Caps’ 221 and take a lead of 239 runs on first innings.
At the close of play on Wednesday at Queen’s Park Oval, however, New Zealand were making a fist of it at 73 for one, requiring a further 166 runs to make the hosts bat again.
At the forefront of the battle were the unflappable pair of Kane Williamson, unbeaten on 38, and left-handed opener Tom Latham, who was 30 not out.
They have so far added 64 for the second wicket, a partnership that was necessary after fast bowler Jerome Taylor trapped captain Brendon McCullum lbw for three, just ten balls after the resumption from tea.
Williamson has faced 118 balls and struck five fours while Latham, who has scored three half-centuries in the series, has counted four fours off 112 deliveries.
However, it was the West Indies batsmen who took precedence on the day, lifting their side to imposing total after resuming from their overnight 310 for five.
Blackwood anchored two partnerships, adding 47 with Chanderpaul for the seventh wicket before putting on a further 76 with captain Denesh Ramdin (32) for the eighth as the Windies pressed home their advantage.
In the process, Chanderpaul almost unnoticed moved into seventh spot on the all-time list of run-scorers in Tests, surpassing Sri Lankan stroke-maker Kumar Sangakkara. The 39-year-old, in his 155th Test, now has 11, 374 runs and is slowly closing in on Brian Lara’s West Indies record of 11, 953 runs.
