New Zealand blew the West Indies away in just over a session. The visitors arrived at the Basin hoping to recreate their Christchurch heroics, but the Kiwi bowlers gave them no chance, bundling them out for 128. With only 56 required, the hosts knocked off the target in just 10 overs to take a 1-0 lead in the series.
The third and final Test will be played at Bay Oval in Mount Maunganui from December 17.
This is Ajay Pal Singh, signing off on behalf of my colleagues Manan Mehta and Dushyant Madhukar Kumar. Goodbye!
Most Wickets in 2025 Across Formats:
72 – Jacob Duffy (New Zealand)*
65 – Matt Henry (New Zealand)
65 – Blessing Muzarabani (Zimbabwe)
58 – Ali Dawood (Bahrain)
58 – Kuldeep Yadav (India)
Most Runs in 2025 Across Formats:
1753 – Shai Hope (West Indies)*
1736 – Shubman Gill (India)
1585 – Brian Bennett (Zimbabwe)
1569 – Agha Salman (Pakistan)
1540 – Joe Root (England)
Biggest Wins for New Zealand vs West Indies in Test (By Wickets):
10 wickets, Wellington, 2006
9 wickets, Hamilton, 1999
9 wickets, Wellington, 2025*
8 wickets, Hamilton, 2013
Tom Latham (New Zealand Captain): "I think we got better and better. We took a little time to get into the game. The morning of Day 1, there were potentially some weary legs with all the hangover from the previous game. However, after that first hour with the ball we got better and better. In the second innings I thought we bowled fantastically well. We adjusted our plans well and I feel the boys bowled really well. Especially, Duffy came out all guns blazing for us. He provided some massive impact.
Obviously, Mitch Hay played awesome in the first innings. He was under some pressure, but he responded well. He played the way he plays for Canterbury. That is what we asked of the guys that they should the way they do for Canterbury. Obviously, Michael too picked up some key wickets. Bowling into the wind all week is not an easy task. These efforts do not go unnoticed in our group for sure. I'm really happy for him to get this performance.
Yeah, I think you look at the group, go back 12 months a lot of new guys stepping up for us. Many performances are coming up as well. The way Tickner got injured in that first innings was very sad to see. It is very important to acknowledge what he brought to the game in that first innings. Had a massive presence. He bowled in the right areas and did a great job for us. Obviously gutted for him. So, the performances were great. We probably weren't all there with the bat, but we can get better heading into the next Test match."
Roston Chase (West Indies Captain): "I think batting is a bit of concern coming from the last game, with the beautiful second innings, I thought we came here and our batters never capitalised on the conditions. We got some starts in the first innings but no one went big and in the second innings, no one got starts. So, I think that is very wrong.
Initially, we thought the conditions to be similar as compared to Christchurch but we found a lot of bounce here. I thought this wicket was a lot easier than the first Christchurch wicket. I thought it was easier to bat, but the scores do not reflect that.
That's exactly, we still have a Test match and can level the series. We have one more match and come out and level the series by playing good cricket."
Jacob Duffy (POTM): "Yeah it was a great performance. I felt Tickner bowled well to start with. To lose him was bad after how he bowled. But then others backed up and performed really well. Rae was brilliant, Foulkes did his thing and Daryl chipped in as well. Just a great team performance to get the job done.
First thought was obviously for Tickner, no one wants to see that, especially after how well he bowled. Then the second thought was my own body, and I just didn't want to do the hard yards all over again so yeah happy to take wickets quickly.
Time in the saddle helps. Feeling comfortable at this level is another thing. Bringing my best product here is very important with the ball or bat. The more you do it, you feel more confident and are able to contribute better.
The way he (Michael Rae) came out and performed was exceptional. 6 wickets on debut is no easy task but he did it beautifully. He also did the hard yards today, running into the wind so I could come down heavily from the other. Appreciate him for that big time."