Tom Latham & Rachin Ravindra Hit Centuries as New Zealand Seize Full Control on Day 3 of 1st Test vs West Indies

New Zealand dominated the third day of the first Test against the West Indies, thanks to centuries from Tom Latham and Rachin Ravindra. They started Day 3 at 32/0, and the opening pair of Latham and Devon Conway continued to bat confidently. The duo took the score close to 100, but Conway was dismissed for 37, ending the opening stand of 84 runs.

Kane Williamson could not make an impact and was dismissed for just nine runs. But Latham and Rachin took full control after that. They built a huge partnership, attacking the bowlers all over the ground, with Rachin hitting several boundaries on his way to a brilliant hundred.

By stumps, New Zealand had reached 385/3, riding on a dominant 279-run partnership between Rachin (176) and Latham (145). They had started the day 96 runs ahead, and by the end, they were completely in command of the match.

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Latham and Rachin’s Complete Dominance

Both Tom Latham and Rachin Ravindra reached their centuries and kept scoring freely even after crossing the milestone. It turned into a tough and tiring day for the West Indies bowlers, who were hit all around the ground and struggled to take wickets.

The long partnership finally ended when Kemar Roach dismissed Latham for a superb 145. Their 279-run stand is now the second-highest partnership by a New Zealand pair against the West Indies in Test cricket.

Soon after, Rachin also fell for a brilliant 176, losing his wicket to Ojay Shields, who picked up his first scalp of the day. His dismissal came just three overs before stumps. Despite the two late wickets, New Zealand were clearly dominant and ended the day on 417/4, with Will Young unbeaten on 21 and Michael Bracewell on 6.

New Zealand head into Day 4 with a massive lead of 481 runs. It remains to be seen how long they will continue batting and what target they will set for the West Indies. By the time the second new ball was taken, New Zealand were already more than 400 runs ahead, with Rachin moving past Latham’s score. Roach broke the huge stand with an inswinger that brushed Latham’s inside edge, while Rachin later fell to a surprise yorker from Shields.

Even with the late breakthroughs, New Zealand added 184 runs in the final session, leaving West Indies facing a huge challenge.

Brief scores:

New Zealand 231 & 417/4 (Rachin Ravindra 176, Tom Latham 145; Kemar Roach 2-61) lead West Indies 167 by 481 runs.