Pakistan bat to save Napier test

NAPIER: Pakistan's bid to take a New Zealand win out of the equation in the third and final test at Napier seemed to be heading in the right direction on the third day when they accumulated 128-0 after bowling the Kiwis out for 471. Traling by another 120 runs, however, the Pakistanis will be up against the odds on a pitch that seems to be slowing considerably.

A wearing pitch might offer the only opportunity of a series win for either side, meaning Daniel Vettori and Danish Kaneria will hold the cards on the fourth and the final days.

But before Kaneria can have another crack at the Kiwis, the Pakistani openers Imran Farhat, 55 off 169, and Salman Butt 66 off 169, who have so far resisted any outside-the-off temptations, will need to bat out a large chunk of the overs tomorrow.

It was a surprising reprisal by the Pakistani openers. Butt, a candidate for the slippers, seems to have found his balance and Farhat is keeping it minimal by playing with a straight bat at all times.

They, perhaps, took a cue from Daniel Vettori, 134 from 186, and Daryl Tuffey, 80* from 123, who showed batsmen in both camps how a little bit of application, can reap so much of a reward. The managements of both the side should ideally sit down and have 'joint batting exercises,’ in the same vein as the joint military exercises, and figure this thing out because both seem to have the same problems. Individual efforts on both sides have carried the batting in this series but it is obvious individuals alone do not win matches against sides like Australia, India or even South Africa for that matter.

The 87-run seventh wicket partnership between Vettori and Tuffey was broken by Danish Kaneria. And as expected, it came through a moment of individual brilliance. Umar Akmal, already a firecracker with the bat, pulled off an acrobatic grab at extra cover to end Vettori's innings and break the unlikely stand. Tuffey, who was dropped by Umar Gul on 32, continued his march and stood and watched from the other end as the tail was brushed aside. But it wasn't without incident. Iian O'Brien was dropped on eight, and Chris Martin a ball before he registered his 28th test duck.

Danish Kaneria was amongst the wickets again, finishing with 7 for 168 from 53 overs.

The seamers were listless with Mohammad Aamer not having fully recovered from his upset stomach and Mohammad Asif and Umar Gul failing to get any bite out of a flat track. One wonders why, with the presence of Abdur Rauf, Umar Gul is still being preferred in tests. Clearly, Gul was retained in the side, despite his slump in recent months, for his pace and ability to get wickets with the old ball. He has neither been fast nor has he bowled full enough to trouble the batsmen with his reverse swing. Rauf, possessing the ability to extract awkward bounce from a length would have been a better choice.

Starting afresh tomorrow, New Zealand will be looking for a quick finish to the game for if it does drag on until the fifth day, it is most likely to end in a draw. Pakistan should also treat the fourth day as the final day and bat with a clear head.

The three test match series is currently tied at 1-1.

Scoreboard after day three of the third cricket test between New Zealand and Pakistan at McLean Park, Napier:

PAKISTAN

First innings 223

Second innings 128-0

NEW ZEALAND

First innings (overnight 346-6)

T McIntosh c K Akmal b Kaneria 74

BJ Watling c U Akmal b Asif 18

M Guptill lbw b Kaneria 13

R Taylor c Yousuf b Kaneria 21

D Flynn c K Akmal b Kaneria 5

D Vettori c U Akmal b Asif 134

B McCullum c Iqbal b Gul 89

D Tuffey not out 80

T Southee lbw b Kaneria 0

I O'Brien st K Akmal b Kaneria 19

C Martin lbw b Kaneria 0

Extras (8b, 4lb, 2w, 4nb) 18

Total (139 overs) 471

Fall: 60 (Watling), 82 (Guptill), 118 (Taylor), 136 (McIntosh), 145 (Flynn), 321 (McCullum), 408 (Vettori), 409 (Southee), 471 (O'Brien), 471 (Martin).

Bowling: M Aamer 22-6-74-0 (1nb, 1w), M Asif 31-10-103-2 (1w), U Gul 33-5-114-1 (3nb), D Kaneria 53-10-168-7.

PAKISTAN

Second innings

I Farhat not out 55

S Butt not out 66

Extras (1lb, 1nb, 5pen) 7

Total (for 0 wkt, 56 overs) 128

Bowling: C Martin 10-2-20-0, T Southee 10-2-25-0 (1nb), I O'Brien 10-0-32-0, D Tuffey 9-0-24-0, D Vettori 15-8-16-0, M Guptill 2-1-5-0.