Tour match: South Australia v New Zealanders at Adelaide, 16-19 Nov 2001 CricInfo Live Report

Tour match: South Australia v New Zealanders at Adelaide, 16-19 Nov 2001
John Polack

South Australia 1st innings: Lunch - Day 1, Tea - Day 1, Stumps - Day 1,

BLEWETT STARS BEFORE VETTORI STINGS BLACK CAPS INTO ACTION

The Redbacks and the Black Caps sound more like families of insects than sporting teams. Fitting then that, as the home side reached a score of 8/281 by stumps, there consistently remained a sting in the contest as South Australia and New Zealand opened their tour match at the Adelaide Oval today.

With an expertly compiled century, the quick clatter of wickets, sizeable partnerships at either end of the day, and contrasting individual performances, this was the quintessential example of a day of fluctuating fortunes.

Last week, South Australia scored 5/589 in a Pura Cup fixture against Tasmania, and two of its number - Darren Lehmann and Greg Blewett - shared a record-breaking association of 386 along the way. That was on a more capricious pitch, and the Kiwis might well have had grounds in mid-afternoon for believing that their bowlers were set to suffer a similar fate today. Especially as they had already experienced a horrible sense of déjà vu as an extraordinarily close lbw decision against Shane Deitz (4) was turned down from the very first ball of the match.

At 1/131 in mid-afternoon, things could barely have looked any better for the home team. Both Blewett (106) and David Fitzgerald (50) were plundering runs at will at that stage, leaving acting New Zealand captain Craig McMillan with plenty of headaches in the arrangement of both his attack and field settings on a cloudless and increasingly warm afternoon.

In the rarely-ruffled figure of Daniel Vettori (3/60), though, McMillan had just the right player to combat the situation. The left arm spinner is still short both of match practice and full physical fitness but could scarcely have produced a better repertoire of deliveries as he set about relaxing South Australia's early stranglehold.

As Daryl Tuffey (3/71) gained no more than a narrow edge in the battle between their three pace bowlers for elevation to the eleven for the Second Test, the form of Vettori was particularly encouraging for the tourists. From the brink of potential despair, he swung the complexion of the day's play completely. He is so determined and indomitable in these kinds of situations that he is probably exactly the sort of character who would prove adept at selling refrigerators to Eskimos too.

On a surface blessed by little more than speckled tinges of grass, he extracted both bounce and turn to put something akin to a hex over the batsmen. Fitzgerald, who had survived a missed stumping only three balls earlier, suddenly found himself induced into cutting to backward point in the spinner's 11th over. After a 112-run partnership, the shot kick-started a slide.

No contemporary Australian player has a better first-class average than Lehmann (0) but his lead over the field wasn't about to be extended.

When he proceeded to smash Chris Martin (0/63) deliveries to fieldsmen on both sides of the wicket as a means of playing himself in, it appeared that something typically significant in the way of entertainment was afoot.

Yet Vettori promptly ended such a prospect in a trice as the South Australian captain advanced a pace at him and tried to loft a flighted delivery ferociously over the leg side - and possibly even out of the suburb too. He miscued, ballooning the ball toward Shane Bond, who stood his ground well under the catch at mid off. Less than a week after the powerful left hander had thrashed an innings of 246 in Hobart, more than one observer was heard to mutter something along the lines of cricket being a funny game.

All the while, Blewett played some sparkling strokes on the path to his third first-class century for the season.

He was subdued in the period that followed Lehmann's dismissal, was beaten twice in one over by Martin, and wasn't always certain against the accuracy of the redoubtable Vettori. But, before top edging a Glen Sulzberger (1/39) off break, he was otherwise in near-complete command. Over 222 minutes, his was a fine innings which mixed elegant attacking strokes with periods of watchful and equally stylish defence. It has been a while since he last played for Australia, but he looked perfectly happy again in this kind of international company.

VETTORI ENGINEERS NEW ZEALAND REVIVAL IN ADELAIDE

Daniel Vettori has engineered a New Zealand revival during the second session of play on the opening day of the Kiwis' tour match against South Australia in Adelaide this afternoon. The talented left arm spinner snared two wickets in the space of seven deliveries at one point to help reduce the locals to a score of 4/174 by tea.

At 1/131 in mid-afternoon, things could barely have looked any better for the home team. Moreover, both Greg Blewett (93*) and David Fitzgerald (50) were plundering runs at will at that stage, leaving acting New Zealand captain Craig McMillan with plenty of headaches in the arrangement of both his attack and field settings on an increasingly warm afternoon.

Suddenly, though, Vettori (2/34) was able to extract both bounce and turn where none had hitherto seemed to exist from the River Torrens End. The first manifestation, at the start of his 11th over, was a delivery that curled not only past the edge of an advancing Fitzgerald's bat but also defied wicketkeeper Adam Parore well outside the line of off stump too, ending in a missed stumping. Three deliveries later, another ball of impeccable length confounded the South Australian opener again, inducing a mistimed cut and a shot that towered off a top edge to Glen Sulzberger at backward point.

As the player with a better first-class average than any other contemporary Australian batsman sauntered to the wicket, it appeared that the Black Caps' torment at the end of a 112-run partnership for the second wicket wasn't exactly over, though. And, when Darren Lehmann (0) proceeded to smash Chris Martin (0/43) deliveries to fieldsmen on both sides of the wicket, it seemed that something significant in the way of entertainment was afoot.

But Vettori promptly decided that was where Lehmann's fun with the bat would end. The South Australian captain advanced a pace and tried to loft a flighted delivery ferociously over the leg side - and possibly even out of the suburb - only to miscue and balloon the ball toward Shane Bond, who stood his ground well under the catch at mid off. Less than a week after the powerful left hander had thrashed an innings of 246 off Tasmania's bowlers in Hobart, more than one observer was heard to mutter something along the lines of cricket being a funny game.

A further wicket - this time through no intervention of Vettori's - fell late in the session when Mathew Sinclair dived to his right in the gully to brilliantly intercept a cut stroke that Ben Higgins (10) had aimed at Daryl Tuffey (2/57).

All the while, Blewett has continued to play well. By the interval, he had drawn to within seven runs of what would be a third first-class century of the summer with a fine exhibition of shots all around the wicket. He was subdued in the period that followed Lehmann's dismissal, was beaten twice in one over by Martin, and hasn't always been certain against the accuracy of the redoubtable Vettori. But he has otherwise been in near-complete command.

REDBACKS QUELL BLACK CAPS THROUGH MATCH'S OPENING SESSION

South Australia has headed to lunch at a score of 1/93 after dominating the opening session of its tour match against New Zealand at the Adelaide Oval today. After an early setback threatened to impede the Redbacks' progress, seasoned campaigners Greg Blewett (40*) and David Fitzgerald (36*) encountered few problems on a warm, cloudless morning in Adelaide on the way to subduing an enthusiastic attack.

The New Zealanders could have been excused for experiencing a certain sense of déjà vu when, from the very first delivery of the day, an extraordinarily close lbw decision against Shane Deitz (4) went against them. And, though the left hander didn't capitalise upon the reprieve - falling in precisely the same manner to the same bowler, Daryl Tuffey (1/27), only six overs later - it set the tone for a disappointing two hours of play from the visitors.

Tuffey and fellow new ball bowler Chris Martin (0/29) were accurate in their opening spells and produced noticeable seam and swing movement on a pitch speckled with green tinges.

But, with the early denial of the appeal against Deitz and the early disappearance of any moisture from the pitch, so the Black Caps' chances to exert maximum pressure on the Redbacks quickly receded. They weren't helped by a lack of discipline, either: a diet of no balls were offered by a trio of pace bowlers jostling for a berth in the Second Test team next week and there were a number of overs featuring poor line and length on either side of the match's first drinks break.

To compound their problems, they struggled to convert a number of near-opportunities against Fitzgerald into a wicket. The right hander was lured into playing away from his body on a number of occasions but not even the two best chances - a thick edge to Daniel Vettori low to the ground in the first of two gullies was grassed, and then a confident caught behind appeal off the bowling of Vettori (0/19) was denied by umpire Simon Taufel - were transformed into success.

Having dodged those bullets with his total on 7 and 19 respectively, Fitzgerald proceeded to punish loose deliveries, particularly through the covers and the point region.

Mixing some classical driving to both sides of the wicket with periods of watchful defence, Blewett was also largely untroubled and looked in exactly the kind of excellent touch that might be expected of a batsman coming off a score of 163 in his previous first-class innings.

The Redbacks won the toss 30 minutes before the start of play, batted sensibly for the 120 minutes that followed, and will dine contentedly for the next 40.