New Zealand’s dominance resumed from where they left off, as Rachin Ravindra notched up his first Test double century. Interestingly enough, his 240 is the highest ever score for a NZ batter’s first Test triple-digit score.

Kane Williamson departed early on, but not after a very well-composed, patient innings of 118. Ruan de Swardt’s disciplined effort with the ball finally got rewarded with a wicket.

However, it was the SA skipper Neil Brand who would impress with his left-arm spin. He took a stinging caught-and-bowled to dismiss Daryl Mitchell, and also sent back the dangerous Glenn Phillips.

The Rachin Ravindra masterclass came to a close at 240, when he was bowled. Brand would pick up the final 3 wickets of the NZ batting lineup, bringing up a superb 6-wicket haul, incidentally his personal-best first-class returns.

The Blackcaps ended up with a massive 511, and the South Africans had a steep mountain to climb.

Openers Neil Brand and Edward Moore managed to negotiate the first few overs, but the introduction of Kyle Jamieson earned NZ two quick wickets in the 10th over.

Moore looked to dig in, but a sharp bouncer from Matt Henry brought about his downfall, too.

The relatively more Test-experienced Zubayr Hamza and David Bedingham tried to get things back on track. However, a steady 44-run stand came to an end when Mitchell Santner bowled Hamza.

The Proteas’ aim for tomorrow will be to stick around as well as keep the score moving. The inexperience has been showing, and the learning curve at Test level can be very unforgiving.

NZ 511 all out in 144 overs (Ravindra 240, Williamson 118 – Brand 26-1-119-6)
SA 80/4 in 28 overs