NZ Opening Batsmen Break Test Milestones Versus WI

Cricket action
Tom Latham and Devon Conway have given the Kiwis a dominant lead.

Final Test, Mount Maunganui (day four of five)

  • New Zealand 575-8 dec: Conway 227, Latham 137 and 306-2 dec: Latham 101, Conway 100
  • West Indies 420 all out: Hodge 123 and 43-0

New Zealand's Tom Latham and Devon Conway achieved a historic first by becoming the initial opening pair in Test match history to hit hundreds in both innings of a match, setting the West Indies a daunting 462-run target for victory.

Latham posted 137 and 101 in this third and final Test, while Conway built upon his mammoth 227 in the first innings with a precise 100 in the second.

The partnership had shared a colossal 323-run stand in the first innings, amassing 515 runs overall—a unprecedented total for the most runs by an opening pair in a single Test match.

Furthermore, Conway joined an elite club in Test history to score a double hundred and a century in the same match.

He followed legends like Greg Chappell, Sunil Gavaskar, Graham Gooch, Brian Lara, and Kumar Sangakkara in securing this extraordinary feat.

Match Context

Earlier on day four, the Windies were dismissed for 420, facing a deficit of 155 runs, before Latham and Conway returned to bat.

Along with contributions from Kane Williamson (40) and Rachin Ravindra (46), the New Zealand top order propelled their side to 306-2 before a sporting declaration, leaving the visitors a near-impossible target of 462 to win and square the series.

At the stumps, West Indies openers had navigated to 43-0, with John Campbell showing great patience to score two runs from 50 balls, while Brandon King was more aggressive on 37.

Katie Wade
Katie Wade

Elara Vance is a tech futurist and innovation strategist with over a decade of experience in analyzing disruptive technologies and their societal impacts.