NELSON, New Zealand, CMC – A defiant, unbeaten half-century from Shayne Moseley and his unbroken sixth-wicket stand with Keemo Paul rescued West Indies A from another batting meltdown, after Rachin Ravindra and Michael Bracewell completed hundreds to put New Zealand A in control of the second “Test” yesterday.
Moseley, the Barbados Pride left-handed opener, was not out on 56 and Paul, the Guyana Jaguars and Windies international all-rounder, was not out on 35, when the visitors reached 142 for five, replying to New Zealand’s first innings total of 481 for seven declared, at the close on the second day of the four-day, first-class match at Saxton Oval Nelson Cricket Ground.
Moseley and Paul batted through a little more than an hour to the close and they have so far added 59 runs in an unbroken sixth wicket stand, after West Indies A were rocked early on at seven for three and later stumbled to 83 for five.
Windies A lost the international trio of opener Brandon King, left-hander Kyle Mayers and all-rounder Rovman Powell for ducks inside the first six overs of their reply before tea.
Moseley anchored short-term fight-backs with internationals, team captain Nicholas Pooran and Fabian Allen before they departed for 26 and 21 respectively, in the first hour after the break.
This followed another hard grind in the field for the Caribbean side, after the Blackcaps reserves resumed on their overnight total of 264 for four and declared their innings around an hour after lunch.
West Indies A again found wickets slow to come on a hard, true pitch, and Ravindra finished on a career-best, undefeated 144, his second first-class hundred, and Bracewell completed his ninth first-class hundred of 144 to spur New Zealand A to their formidable total.
International off-spinner Rahkeem Cornwall was the most successful Windies A bowler, taking three for 91 from 37.5 overs.
The visitors then stumbled to 21 for three at tea, after the New Zealanders’ new-ball pair of out-of-favour internationals, Doug Bracewell, their captain, and Scott Kuggelejin ran through the top order.
King was deceived by a well-pitched outswinger and bowled by the fourth ball of the innings from Bracewell and left-hander Mayers edged the third ball of third over from the same bowler that was angled across him and was caught behind.
Three overs later, Powell, the West Indies A captain in the previous match, was bowled, when he dragged an innocuous, short delivery from Kuggelejin onto his stumps.
Pooran came to the crease and got his side moving with all but two runs in his innings coming in boundaries in a counter-offensive with Moseley.
They carried Windies A to within reach of the 50-run mark before left-hander Pooran was caught on the fine leg boundary from a miscued hook at a short delivery from Blair Tickner in the eighth over after tea.
Allen joined Moseley and tried to keep the momentum going, taking advantage of loose bowling, particularly from leg-spinner Ish Sodhi, upon whom fortune smiled.
Allen, trying to hit the leg-spinner out of the attack, was caught at mid-on from a mistimed pull to leave the visitors’ innings in disarray.
Earlier, West Indies A toiled to make the breakthrough, and Michael Bracewell, starting the day on 93, and Ravindra, resuming from 30, batted through the first hour comfortably.
During this period, a delivery from Romario Shepherd was steered to third man for three to carry Bracewell to his hundred from exactly 200 balls before Cornwall had the left-handed batsman caught at long-off about half-hour before lunch, ending a 161-run, fifth-wicket stand with Ravindra.
It was the only success for Windies A before the interval and New Zealand A reached 373 for five with Ravindra on 76 and Fletcher on 13.
After lunch, the Caribbean side failed to stop Ravindra and he crossed the threshold, when he pulled his 155th ball, from leg-spinner Hayden Walsh Jr, to deep mid-wicket for a single.
Cornwall bagged a couple of easy wickets for West Indies A with the Blackcaps reserves eyeing a declaration.
The off-spinner had Fletcher lbw for 48, essaying a reverse sweep, ending a sixth-wicket stand of 107 with Ravindra, and Bracewell caught at mid-off for five, charging down the pitch and miscuing a lofted off-drive to bring the innings to a close. Windies A trail 0-1 in the two-match series, after they crashed to an innings and 143 runs defeat in the first “Test”, which ended last Saturday at the Bay Oval in Mount Maunganui.