QUEENSTOWN, New Zealand, CMC – West Indies prospective Test bowlers suffered a blow to their confidence, when Will Young and Cole McConchie hit hundreds to earn New Zealand “A” a tame draw in their tour match yesterday.
The Windies attack again failed to make inroads into the batting of the Black Caps’ reserves, and Young, with a top score of 133 and McConchie, not out on 124, batted the home team to safety on 440 for eight, replying to the Caribbean side’s first innings total of 571, on the final day of the four-day, first-class match at John Davies Oval.
Uncapped pacer Chemar Holder was the most successful Windies bowler with three for 100 from 28 overs while Kraigg Brathwaite, plying his uncomplicated off-spin, grabbed two for 66 from 28 overs.
The match was the final warm-up for the visitors before the first Test against New Zealand, starting Thursday (6 p.m. East Caribbean Time) at Seddon Park in Hamilton.
West Indies would have been hoping for an early breakthrough, when play started half-hour earlier to make up time lost for an early close the previous day and New Zealand “A” resumed from their overnight total of 249 for four.
But they failed to catch a break and Young and McConchie carried the New Zealanders to 356 for four at lunch.
Windies captain Darren Bravo went through a succession of bowlers to find the spark, including the uncomplicated medium-pace of Jermaine Blackwood’s, who Young turned through square leg for two to reach his milestone from 209 balls a little before the morning drinks break.
Brathwaite finally broke the stand with the fourth ball after lunch when Young was bowled behind his legs, getting too far inside the line to play into the leg-side.
This proved to be a purple patch for the Caribbean side – Holder bowled Dylan Cleaver for 10 off the inside edge five overs later, and Brathwaite had Sean Solia caught in the deep for a duck in the next over.
West Indies, however, continued to find McConchie a brick wall and he reached his landmark from 217 balls, when he cut John Campbell, plying his flighty off-spin, through backward point for his fifth boundary.
The Windies still hunted a swift end to the New Zealand “A” innings but Ben Sears came to the crease and spent nearly an hour with McConchie to carry the home team to 400 before Campbell trapped him lbw for five.
The visitors spent another half-hour trying to remove McConchie and Blair Tickner, not out on 13, without success before the two teams chose to bring the match to a tame conclusion about five minutes before the rescheduled tea break.
