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Saturday, January 08, 2011

Pakistan dominate second session


Updated at: 0842 PST,  Friday, January 07, 2011
HAMILTON: Pakistan took four wickets to claim the honours in the second session as New Zealand went to tea on the opening day of the first cricket Test at 160 for five.

New Zealand added only 82 runs in the two hours of play as Abdur Rehman put the brakes on the scoring with a miserly spell of spin bowling to give him two for 32 off 16 overs.

While the session belonged to Pakistan, their efforts were helped by the manner in which the New Zealand batsmen gave their wickets away.

Rehman's victims included Martin Guptill who had toiled away for nearly four hours to make 50 before receiving a full toss four balls before tea.

It was a delivery that could have been dispatched to any boundary but instead Guptill patted an easy catch to Misbah-ul-Haq in the covers.

Umar Gul took the prized wicket of Brendon McCullum when the New Zealand opener resumed after lunch in an aggressive frame of mind following a cautious start to the match.

With the first ball he faced after the break McCullum drove Gul for six and with the first ball of his next over he pulled him over the mid-wicket boundary.

But when the former Test wicketkeeper, who now wants to focus on his batting career, went for a third boundary he directed the ball straight to Azhar Ali to be out for 56.

Ross Taylor survived a comical run out attempt when Wahab Riaz collected the ball a metre from the stumps and managed to hit his own ankle as he tried to throw the ball.

But it was a short-lived reprieve for Taylor who broke Rehman's run of five consecutive maidens with a four but was caught behind on the next ball by Adnan Akmal for six.

Jesse Ryder reached 22 and was looking to solidify the New Zealand innings when he was trapped backing up too far to a straight drive from Guptill which Riaz deflected on to the stumps.

The not out batsmen were Kane Williamson on 12 and Reece Young, making his Test debut, on two.