Pakistan draw first blood after Shoaib’s deadly spell

Fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar ended with career-best figures of six wickets for 11 runs as Pakistan humiliated New Zealand by an innings and 324...

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Fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar ended with career-best figures of six wickets for 11 runs as Pakistan humiliated New Zealand by an innings and 324 runs on the third day of the first Test on Friday.

Shoaib Akhtar celebrates after taking a wicket on the third day on Friday. Reuters

The Kiwis, skittled for 73 in the morning, followed on a massive 570 runs behind but struggled again despite the absence of Shoaib with a swollen ankle as they were dismissed for 246.

Leg-spinner Danish Kaneria took five for 110 as 14 Kiwi wickets fell in the day.

In a match of extraordinary performances — Inzamam-ul-Haq made 329, the 10th highest score in Test history, out of Pakistan’s 643 and more than both the New Zealand innings put together — the result also represented the fifth biggest defeat by an innings in Test history.

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Lou Vincent and skipper Stephen Fleming, who top-scored with 66, made battling half-centuries in the second innings but the tourists crumbled away after reaching 186 for three.

SCOREBOARD

PAKISTAN (1ST INNINGS) 643
NEW ZEALAND (1ST INNINGS): M Richardson b Shoaib 8, M Horne b Shoaib 4, L Vincent c Latif b Kaneria 21, S Fleming b Shoaib 2, C Harris b Shoaib 2, C McMillan c Afridi b Saqlain 15, R Hart lbw b Waqar 4, D Vettori c Waqar b Saqlain 7, B Walker lbw b Shoaib 0, D Tuffey not out 6, C Martin b Shoaib 0
Extras: (lb-1, nb-3) 4
Total: (All out, 30.2 overs) 73
Fall of wickets: 1-12, 2-17, 3-19, 4-21, 5-53, 6-57, 7-66, 8-67, 9-73
Bowling: Waqar 10-6-21-1, Shoaib 8.2-4-11-6, Kaneria 6-1-19-1, Saqlain 6-1-21-2.

NEW ZEALAND (2ND INNINGS): M Richardson c Latif b Saqlain 32, M Horne c Latif b Waqar 0, L Vincent c Latif b Kaneria 57, S Fleming c sub (Sami) b Kaneria 6, C Harris lbw b Razzaq 43, C McMillan lbw b Kaneria 2, R Hart b Kaneria 0, D Vettori c sub (Malik) b Razzaq 5, B Walker not out 15, D Tuffey c Younis b Kaneria 12, C Martin c sub (Malik) b Saqlain 0.
Extras: (b-4, lb-6, nb-4) 14.
Total: (All out in 76.3 overs) 246
Fall of wickets: 1-3, 2-69, 3-101, 4-186, 5-193, 6-193, 7-204, 8-227, 9-245.
Bowling: Waqar 9-1-38-1, Razzaq 14-2-47-2, Kaneria 32-3-110-5, Saqlain 17.3-3-38-2, Afridi 4-1-3-0.

Shoaib continued where he left off after scything through the New Zealand top order with a spell of four wickets for four runs on Thursday evening. New Zealand, resuming their first innings on 58 for six, soon lost Daniel Vettori and Robbie Hart before Shoaib polished off the tail with two wickets in two deliveries, pinning Brooke Walker leg before and then firing in a yorker to uproot Chris Martin’s middle stump first ball. The innings had lasted 30.2 overs.

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Things got even worse when opener Matthew Horne was caught down the leg side off skipper Waqar Younis by wicketkeeper Rashid Latif for a third-ball duck after the follow-on was enforced.

Mark Richardson and Vincent took the score to 69 before Richardson was caught behind off spinner Saqlain Mushtaq and Latif took his third catch to remove Vincent for 57 off Kaneria.