Kane Williamson made yet more history in the first test against Pakistan - but the selfless former skipper would surely trade it all for another eight wickets tonight.
In his first innings since relinquishing the test captaincy, Williamson scored an unbeaten 200 on day four in Karachi, ending an indifferentbatting year in supreme style.
New skipper Tim Southee declared once Williamson had reached the milestone, one ball before tea and with 612-9 on the board. That was New Zealand’s 10th-highest total in test history and the eighth time they surpassed 600 in the last decade.
Southee must have been tempted by thoughts of an earlier declaration, though there were enough overs remaining for spinners Michael Bracewell and Ish Sodhi to strike, leaving Pakistan on 77-2 and trailing by 97 runs.
With the pitch still offering turn, the wickets of Abdullah Shafique and Shan Masood will have built the Black Caps’ confidence heading into day five, aiming to make a winning return after 20 years away from Pakistan.
Even if the match does conclude in a draw, however, it will remain one of the most memorable for Williamson.
The 32-year-old now boasts more double centuries than any New Zealand batsman, breaking a tie with predecessor as skipper Brendon McCullum.
He also became the third man to score 200 in four consecutive calendar years, joining Sri Lanka’s Marvan Atapattu (1998-2001) and West Indian great Brian Lara (2003-2006).
It was Williamson’s first double hundred offshore, his second against Pakistan - following the 238 he posted in Christchurch last year - and third in which he ended the innings unbeaten.
That knock at Hagley Oval was Williamson’s most recent century in any format, and by breaking that five-test drought on day three, he became the 25th batsman to notch 25 test tons.
The Kiwi pulled within one of Sir Garry Sobers and two of Allan Border on the all-time leaderboard, while among contemporaries Williamson trails only his Big Four cohort - Steve Smith (29), Joe Root (28) and Virat Kohli (27).
And with his career average breaching 54 late in the innings, Williamson now boasts the sixth-best mark of the 25-man group, edging clear of even Sachin Tendulkar (53.78).
It all added up to an outstanding individual outing, though one with no guarantee of eventually being allied to team success.
Williamson plays a reverse-sweep on day four. Photo / AP
After resuming on 440-6, Williamson and the lower order batted without haste on day four, working their way into a position from which they could not be beaten. The Black Caps added 172 runs for the loss of three wickets in the first two sessions, scoring at 2.92 runs an over.
Williamson played slightly more expansively as they day progressed, hitting his solitary six to bring up the 600, having appeared extremely comfortable throughout his 392-ball stay.
The No 3 was given out in the first session for the second time in the innings, rapped on the pad by Nauman Ali. But after his first review had revealed an inside edge, this time an immediate referral was justified by replays showing the ball pitching outside leg.
Aside from a stumping chance offered on 21 - squandered by Sarfaraz Ahmed - Williamson’s 10-hour stay at the crease came without a major miscue, forming decent partnerships with Daryl Mitchell (65), Tom Blundell (90) and finally Sodhi (154).
The legspinner will end his first test in four years feeling good about his efforts with ball and bat, compiling a new high score of 65. And considering the three zeroes posted by the batsmen below him, Sodhi’s presence was invaluable to Williamson’s immense knock.
But with that pair striking at 46.8, the Black Caps could come to rue their disinterest in more aggressively advancing the match. After 21 wickets fell across the first four days, the tourists must now claim eight scalps on the last.
