New Zealand register cleansweep with innings win against West Indies

The hosts team New Zealand won the series by 2-0. After a nearly 20-minute delayed start, it took all of eight balls for New Zealand to break the unbeaten 82-run stand for the seventh wicket.

Jason Holder was beaten on the outside edge and then bowled by a beautiful delivery from Tim Southee that set the tone for the rest of the day. Alzarri Joseph swung his bat around for three boundaries and two sixes in his cameo of 12-ball 24 before he fell glancing behind — a change in angle to round the wicket that worked from Southee.

Joshua Da Silva was impressive on debut, going on to make his maiden fifty, but couldn’t keep out Neil Wagner’s first over. A nip-backer from the left-armer rapped him on the pads and it looked beyond DRS right away, as Da Silva would soon find out after using a review. There was another review, this time from New Zealand, but Daryl Mitchell’s delivery was missing Shannon Gabriel’s leg-stump.

That the moment arrived right after Chemar Holder hit Mitchell for consecutive boundaries provided the most thrilling moment of the session: Could West Indies make New Zealand bat again?

Turns out, they couldn’t; It was Wagner again who picked Gabriel with a full and straight ball. Bowled, and that’s that from the West Indies on this tour.

Brief Scores: New Zealand 460 (Henry Nicholls 160; Shannon Gabriel 3-93) beat West Indies 131 (Jermaine Blackwood 69; Tim Southee 5-32, Kyle Jamieson 5-34) & 317 (John Campbell 68, Jason Holder 61, Joshua Da Silva 57; Neil Wagner 3-54) by an innings and 12 runs.