Cricket: Wellington rely on Jones again

Wellington opening batsman Richard Jones continued his hot run of form on an otherwise average day for the home side against Auckland at the Basin Reserve yesterday.

After winning the toss Wellington, the national four-day champions, were out for a disappointing 238 on a good batting surface. Auckland were three without loss in reply at stumps in the State Championship match.

Seven Wellington batsmen reached double figures, with Jones and Grant Donaldson top scoring with 52 apiece. There were numerous partnerships of promise, but the best of them was 39 for the second wicket.

"It was a shame really. On that pitch we should have been thinking in terms of 340-350," said former Auckland player Jones.

It needed a Wellington batsman to take control, and Jones looked the most likely. In his previous five first-class games for Wellington he had scored four hundreds and a 50, the highest being 188 against Otago. Jones was out lbw yesterday trying to play medium-pacer Andre Adams off his legs. The lively Adams was the best of the Auckland bowlers, hitting the seam to cause trouble in taking four for 53. Tama Canning excelled, too, with five for 58 from 27.5 overs, while Auckland were sharp in the field until a couple of catching blemishes late in the day.

* Strongly-built pace bowler Warren Wisneski had quit cricket for Canterbury until he received a phone call in England from new provincial coach Michael Sharpe wanting him to reconsider.

The former New Zealand one-day player has made an impressive return to the first-class scene after being dropped last summer, capped by a five-wicket haul against Otago at the Village Green in Christchurch yesterday.

However, despite Wisneski's five for 74, which helped restrict Otago to 214 in their first innings, Canterbury made a shaky start to be 59 for three at stumps.

Otago's best innings was a half-century by left-hander Andrew Hore, who continued his affinity with the ground, having scored 100 and 77 there last season.

The Canterbury rot was halted by Michael Papps and the in-form Chris Harris who added 32 unbroken for the third wicket.

* In Blenheim, Northern Districts held the upper hand against Central Districts. Northern dismissed the home side for 181 on a flat Horton Park pitch and at stumps were 84 for three in reply.

Central never got a partnership of any substance together against a Northern bowling attack again without former international Simon Doull, who was made 12th man.

Richard King and Bevan Griggs topped the scoring for Central with 31 each as pace bowler Ian Butler did the damage with four for 46 from 19.1 overs.

Joseph Yovich, Graham Aldridge and Scott Styris finished with two wickets each.

- NZPA