KEY POINTS:
NORTHAMPTON - New Zealand opener Aaron Redmond notched his second century of the England cricket tour but there was disappointment for Daniel Flynn in his comeback match here today.
Redmond's impressive 121, his sixth first-class century, led New Zealand to a total of 329 for eight after being
sent in to bat by Northamptonshire on day one of their three-day tour match.
He had backup from stand-in captain Brendon McCullum's 72 and fellow opener Peter Fulton's 57, while Flynn could only manage six in his first innings since his nasty head knock from England paceman James Anderson which cost him two teeth.
The young left-hander, who passed a fitness test just minutes before play started, faced seven deliveries before being trapped leg before wicket by Northants seamer David Wigley who took four for eight off 19 balls late in the day.
Wigley sparked a New Zealand collapse of five for 32 after he broke Redmond and McCullum's 144-run stand for the fourth wicket.
On an easy-paced pitch against an attack missing England spinner Monty Panesar and South African internationals Lance Klusener, Andrew Hall, Johan van der Wath and Nicky Boje, New Zealand's batsmen got the chance to plunder as they eye next Thursday's third test in Nottingham.
In just his second innings of the tour, Fulton went the right way about a recall as he dominated the morning session, hitting eight fours and a six to be well poised on 57 at lunch.
But he missed a royal chance to apply even more pressure to test incumbents James Marshall and Flynn when he was caught behind, fourth ball after the interval.
He added 113 with Redmond who passed 500 runs in his 11th innings of the tour.
His second 50 took just 64 balls and included nine fours and a six, a straight hit off left-arm spinner Graeme White.
Redmond batted just short of five hours, faced 227 balls and hit 19 fours and a six in all before being caught at point off Wigley.
It was a timely innings for Redmond who scored just 51 runs in his first four test innings after a career-best 146 against England A.
"I've been working hard in the nets and it's just nice to get that momentum again. It's been reasonably tough but the best thing you can do is keep training hard and stick to your routines," he said.
Marshall was also in need of a long stay, with just 52 runs in the test series to date, but only managed 11 before being caught at first slip.
Flynn was put through a rigorous fitness test by assistant coach Bob Carter, including a net session and running between the wickets.
He had his third bout of dental surgery in a week yesterday when a nerve in his bottom tooth was removed after causing him a painful sleepless night.
He arrived during a tricky period late in the day, with Wigley swinging the ball in, and edged his second ball between the wicketkeeper and first slip before being trapped in front.
McCullum, the stand-in captain, hit a measured 72 off 96 deliveries, including six fours and a six, before falling lbw to Wigley. He was unhappy with the decision from debut umpire Steve Gale and appeared to have got an inside edge.
Captain Daniel Vettori was rested along with Jamie How, Jacob Oram, Chris Martin, and Iain O'Brien.
SCOREBOARD
New Zealand
First innings
P Fulton c O'Brien b Louw 57
A Redmond c Wakely b Wigley 121
J Marshall c Peters b Logan 11
R Taylor c O'Brien b Lucas 10
B McCullum lbw b Wigley 72
D Flynn lbw b Wigley 6
G Hopkins lbw b Louw 10
K Mills c Wakely b Wigley 0
T Southee not out 12
J Patel not out 2
Extras (1b, 12lb, 5w, 10nb) 28
Total (for 8 wkts, 90 overs) 329
Fall: 113 (Fulton), 130 (Marshall), 145 (Taylor), 289 (Redmond), 297 (Flynn), 300 (McCullum), 300 (Mills), 321 (Hopkins).
Bowling: J Louw 17-8-23-2 (3w), D Lucas 17-3-64-1 (2w, 10nb), R Logan 15-1-87-1, D Wigley 17-3-74-4, J Brown 19-6-46-0, G White 5-1-22-0.
- NZPA
