David Leggat: Cricket's test victories still taste the sweetest

Douglas Bracewell of New Zealand is congratulated by team-mates. Photo / Getty Images

Not for the first time, this week amply demonstrated that when it comes to cricket success, a memorable test win kicks any number of ODI or T20 victories to the kerb.

New Zealand's win over Australia at Hobart really mattered.

Forget the riches players collect on their travels in the coming years in the shortest form of the game; forget the meaningless platitudes they may get for possessing the ability to wallop 15 in six balls.

Make no mistake, the New Zealand players at Hobart learned what it meant to win something meaningful. That memory will stay with them for the rest of their careers.

A few hours after the win, what sounded like a haka emanated from the New Zealand dressing room at Bellerive Oval.

It was actually the team pledge, done after each test win.

The pledge has the sort of sentiments you would expect, about pride, the country and so on. This one was done with gusto. This one counted.

Certainly it helped that the opponents were Australia. A test win over, say Zimbabwe, Bangladesh or even the West Indies these days doesn't carry remotely the currency of a victory over Australia, or England or South Africa for that matter.

Consider that New Zealand have won eight of 52 tests against Australia; eight of 94 against England; four of 35 against the summer's marquee visitors South Africa.

New Zealand will get the chance to show what progress has been made, what lessons have been absorbed out of Hobart, when South Africa arrive in February.

Zimbabwe are first up, in Napier at the end of next month. The expectation must be nothing less than a comprehensive beating.

Considering they'd been given a serious dusting at Brisbane a week before the triumph of Hobart, no one gave tuppence for their chances of levelling the series.

It was an unusual test, because of the conditions, inordinately green and seam friendly for much of 239 overs.

But that didn't lessen the size of New Zealand's achievement. They bowled better than Australia and had just enough runs in the bank to get the job done. As it unfolded, they should have won by more than the slender seven runs.

So where should it sit among the test wins. The big firsts always have a special place in any considerations.

Therefore that maiden win over the West Indies at Eden Park 55 years ago still matters.

Australia at Lancaster Park in 1974 - twin centuries from Glenn Turner in a five-wicket win - still matters.

England at the Basin Reserve four years later - Boycott b Collinge 1, all out 64 - still matters.

Maiden wins in India and Pakistan in 1969, one series drawn, the other won in the most testing conditions, still matter.

Beating England at Leeds in 1983, the first victory over the Mother Country at their place, still matters, so, too, the first series win there in 1986.

A year earlier New Zealand accomplished the same feat in Australia, including perhaps the most complete win of the lot, an innings and 41 runs at Brisbane.

As always the important part is what happens from here. You want this to represent the start of something special, not a false dawn.

We'll have a better idea on that at the end of March.