Boult leads New Zealand fightback against Pakistan in Abu Dhabi
ABU DHABI (Reuters) - New Zealand fast bowler Trent Boult claimed four wickets to spark a recovery as they restricted Pakistan to a first innings lead of 74 on day two of the first Test in Abu Dhabi on Saturday.
Boult broke two half century stands, while debutant left-arm spinner Ajaz Patel ripped through the lower order to dismiss Pakistan for 227.
New Zealand, who collapsed for 153 in their first innings, lost opener Tom Latham for a duck when they returned to bat in the final session but recovered to reached 56-1 at stumps.
Resuming at 59 for two, Pakistan’s overnight batting pair Azhar Ali and Haris Sohail made steady progress in the morning session to add 64 runs before falling in consecutive overs.
Sohail (38) chipped a full-toss off spinner Ish Sodhi to mid-wicket before Boult forced an edge off Ali (22), which was matched with a stunning one-handed catch by wicketkeeper BJ Watling.
Azam and Asad Shafiq batted with intent as they improved their scoring rate to reach 144-4 at lunch.
Pakistan were threatening to run away with the game, having moved into the lead, but the run flow was choked by fast bowler Neil Wagner, who at one point racked up four consecutive maidens.
It was Boult who provided the breakthrough when Shafiq (43) could only chop a searing inswinger back on to his stumps.
Patel, at the other end, was rewarded for his extended spell as he removed Pakistan captain Sarfraz Ahmed through a mistimed sweep to square leg for his first Test wicket.
The 30-year-old Indian-born Kiwi did not have to wait long for his second wicket, with Bilal Asif getting himself stumped off a flighted delivery.
Yasir Shah showed signs of resistance but, after playing out 38 balls for nine runs, became the 150th Test scalp for Wagner.
The Kiwis wrapped up the innings when Azam feathered a Boult delivery down the leg side to Watling.
Azam finished with a gritty 62 off 109 balls to give the hosts a precious lead on a deteriorating surface, while Boult finished with an impressive 4-54.
The visitors exuded calm in the final hour after losing Latham in the second over as skipper Kane Williamson (27) and Jeet Raval (26) trimmed Pakistan’s lead to 18 runs, negotiating a disciplined opening spell from in-form quick Mohammad Abbas.
SCOREBOARD
New Zealand 1st innings Jeet Raval c Sarfraz Ahmed b Mohammad Abbas 7 Tom Latham c Mohammad Hafeez b Yasir Shah 13 Kane Williamson c Sarfraz Ahmed b Hasan Ali 63 Ross Taylor c Sarfraz Ahmed b Yasir Shah 2 Henry Nicholls c Sarfraz Ahmed b Mohammad Abbas 28 BJ Watling lbw Haris Sohail 10 Colin de Grandhomme lbw Hasan Ali 0 Ish Sodhi lbw Haris Sohail 4 Neil Wagner c Asad Shafiq b Bilal Asif 12 Ajaz Patel lbw Yasir Shah 6 Trent Boult Not Out 4 Extras 0b 4lb 0nb 0pen 0w 4 Total (66.3 overs) 153 all out Fall of Wickets : 1-20 Raval, 2-35 Latham, 3-39 Taylor, 4-111 Nicholls, 5-123 Williamson, 6-123 de Grandhomme, 7-128 Sodhi, 8-133 Watling, 9-149 Wagner, 10-153 Patel Bowling Ov Md Rn Wk Econ Ex Mohammad Abbas 12 7 13 2 1.08 Hasan Ali 16 6 38 2 2.38 Bilal Asif 13 1 33 1 2.54 Yasir Shah 16.3 2 54 3 3.27 Haris Sohail 8 2 11 2 1.38 Mohammad Hafeez 1 1 0 0 0.00 ..................................................................... Pakistan 1st innings Imam ul-Haq c Kane Williamson b Colin de Grandhomme 6 Mohammad Hafeez c Kane Williamson b Trent Boult 20 Azhar Ali c BJ Watling b Trent Boult 22 Haris Sohail c Tom Latham b Ish Sodhi 38 Asad Shafiq b Trent Boult 43 Babar Azam c BJ Watling b Trent Boult 62 Sarfraz Ahmed c Neil Wagner b Ajaz Patel 2 Bilal Asif st BJ Watling b Ajaz Patel 11 Yasir Shah c BJ Watling b Neil Wagner 9 Hasan Ali c Ross Taylor b Colin de Grandhomme 4 Mohammad Abbas Not Out 0 Extras 4b 4lb 1nb 0pen 1w 10 Total (83.2 overs) 227 all out Fall of Wickets : 1-27 ul-Haq, 2-27 Hafeez, 3-91 Sohail, 4-91 Ali, 5-174 Shafiq, 6-177 Ahmed, 7-195 Asif, 8-220 Shah, 9-227 Ali, 10-227 Azam Bowling Ov Md Rn Wk Econ Ex Trent Boult 18.2 6 54 4 2.95 Colin de Grandhomme 13 6 30 2 2.31 Ajaz Patel 24 4 64 2 2.67 Neil Wagner 18 5 30 1 1.67 1w 1nb Ish Sodhi 10 0 41 1 4.10 ......................................... New Zealand 2nd innings Jeet Raval Not Out 26 Tom Latham b Hasan Ali 0 Kane Williamson Not Out 27 Extras 3b 0lb 0nb 0pen 0w 3 Total (22.4 overs) 56-1 Fall of Wickets : 1-0 Latham To Bat : Taylor, Nicholls, Watling, de Grandhomme, Sodhi, Wagner, Patel, Boult Bowling Ov Md Rn Wk Econ Ex Mohammad Abbas 6 4 5 0 0.83 Hasan Ali 4 1 12 1 3.00 Yasir Shah 8 1 21 0 2.62 Haris Sohail 1 0 1 0 1.00 Bilal Asif 3 0 13 0 4.33 Mohammad Hafeez 0.4 0 1 0 1.50 .............................. Umpire Bruce Oxenford Umpire Ian Gould Video Paul Reiffel Match Referee Javagal Srinath
