New Zealand Openers Rewrite Test Records Versus West Indies

Cricket action
Tom Latham and Devon Conway have established a formidable advantage for their team.

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: Hodge 123 and 43-0

New Zealand's Tom Latham and Devon Conway etched their names in the record books by becoming the first openers in Test match history to register tons in each innings of a match, leaving the West Indies a daunting 462-run target for victory.

Latham notched up 137 and 101 in this series decider, while Conway added to his mammoth 227 in the first innings with a composed 100 in the second.

The pair had shared a colossal 323-run stand in the first innings, totaling 515 runs overall—a new record for the most runs by an opening pair in a Test.

Furthermore, Conway joined an elite club in Test history to score 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 achieving this extraordinary feat.

Match Context

Earlier on day four, the Windies were dismissed for 420, facing a deficit of 155 runs, before Latham and Conway returned to bat.

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 navigated to 43-0, with John Campbell digging in to score two runs from 50 balls, while Brandon King was more aggressive on 37.

Patrick Patrick
Patrick Patrick

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