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Kane Williamson torched over New Zealand 'calamity' in first Test against Australia

The cricket world has turned on the Kiwis after the calamitous scenes.

andrew reid
·5-min read
Pictured right, New Zealand batter Kane Williamson.
Kane Williamson was run out for a duck in disastrous scenes for New Zealand in the first Test against Australia. Pic: Fox Cricket/Getty

A moment of madness involving Kane Williamson has summed up a shocking start to day two of the first cricket Test against Australia in Wellington. New Zealand's best batter was run out for a duck in calamitous scenes after lunch, with the home side chasing Australia's formidable first innings 383.

The Aussies had centurion Cameron Green (174 not out) and tailender Josh Hazlewood (22) to thank for their total, with the pair sharing in a new Aussie Test record stand of 116 runs for the 10th wicket. Hazlewood claimed another piece of Aussie cricket history by overtaking Glenn McGrath with the highest Test score for an Aussie No.11 in New Zealand.

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The Kiwis would already have been ruing the failure to get Hazlewood out before he and Green piled on the runs for Australia at Wellington's Basin Reserve. Things soon went from bad to worse for the home side as the Aussies grabbed three quick wickets at the start of the second session.

Tom Latham was the first to go for just five runs after a superb ball from Mitchell Starc left the Black Caps opener in two minds. Latham was looking to defend a swinging delivery from Starc that pitched on a good length outside off-stump, with the Kiwi batter chopping the ball back onto his stumps.

That brought Williamson to the crease and the superstar batter loomed as New Zealand's best chance of getting back into the contest. The world's No.1-ranked Test batter had scored seven centuries in his last seven Tests and another ton would see him move past Steve Smith with a 33rd across his career.

Any such notions were extinguished just two balls later though when Williamson was run out for a duck after a disastrous mix-up with his batting partner, Will Young. Williamson pushed a Starc delivery to mid-off and took off down the wicket for a quick single but a lack of communication with Young saw the New Zealand pair run into each other.

Mitchell Starc looks on amid the calamity.
Disastrous scenes for New Zealand in the first Test against Australia.

Kane Williamson falls victim to horror mix-up

Marnus Labuschagne took full advantage of the horrendous mix-up to throw down the stumps at the non-striker's end, with Williamson stranded short of the crease in his first run out in Test cricket since 2012. “I cannot believe it,” former Aussie cricket star Brendon Julian said in commentary “How has that happened? Calamity out there in the middle.”

Former New Zealand batter Craig McMillan added: “I can’t believe what I’ve just seen here. That is just a disaster for New Zealand.” That disbelief from the commentators was echoed around the cricket world, as viewers savaged New Zealand over the embarrassing scenes.

New Zealand lose five wickets in one session

Hazlewod backed up his superb display with the bat to grab Australia's third wicket in the second session when he sent Rachin Ravindra packing for a duck. Hazlewood drew a thick edge from the Black Caps batter that saw the ball fly to Nathan Lyon at point and the Aussie spinner take a brilliant diving catch to leave the hosts reeling at 3-12.

Young and Daryl Mitchell looked to steady the ship for the under-fire hosts after the slew of wickets and appeared to be batting themselves into the contest. Within the space of two balls though, the Kiwis found themselves five wickets down and in dire straights.

Aussie skipper Pat Cummins removed Mitchell (11) after being hit for a boundary the previous ball, with the Kiwi edging one to Alex Carey to take a smart catch behind the stumps. Mitch Marsh then got in on the act with the very first ball of the next over, with Carey taking another catch to send Young packing for nine, with New Zealand limping to the tea break at 5-42.

The disastrous series of events left New Zealand with a mountain to climb on day two after the record-breaking 10th wicket stand from Hazlewood and Green. The Aussies started day two on 9-279 and ended their first innings on a massive 383.

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