Click here for live scoring of the first test between the Black Caps and West Indies.
KEY POINTS:
DUNEDIN- Daniel Flynn made his highest test score on the opening day of the first test between New Zealand and the West Indies before becoming the victim of test cricket's new video review rules.
Flynn top scored with 95 as New Zealand reached 226-4 after winning the toss and batting first on a mild pitch at the University Oval, with play ended due to bad light an hour before schedule.
Debuting opener Tim McIntosh made 34 after taking 44 minutes to score his first test run, Jesse Ryder made an unbeaten 54 and West Indies captain Chris Gayle took 3-42 as the teams ended the day evenly poised.
Flynn had batted almost four hours, and was approaching his first hundred when he was the subject of an lbw appeal by Gayle. It was turned down by umpire Amiesh Saheba of India, in his debut test, but the West Indies captain then had the option of calling for a second opinion.
The two-test series between New Zealand and the West Indies is just the second in cricket history to use the Umpire Referral System, allowing both batting and bowling sides to submit contentious decisions to the television umpire for review.
The system was first trialed in the series between India and Sri Lanka earlier this year, when the video was called for 48 times.
Television umpire Rudi Koertzen of South Africa, who was also involved in that India-Sri Lanka series, reviewed the lbw decision from several replay angles. He first determined the ball had struck Flynn in line with the stumps; he took a side-on delivery to satisfy himself the ball was not passing over the stumps and then returned to a head-on shot which suggested the ball was going to hit.
Koertzen relayed his decision to Saheba, who crossed his arms in front of his chest to show his initial decision had been overturned and raised his finger to indicate Flynn's dismissal.
Flynn accepted the decision with equanimity, if a little bewilderment. The West Indies were jubilant and spectators were bemused as the replays viewed by Koertzen were not available on the big screen at the ground.
His departure leveled a match which had leaned in New Zealand's favor while he was at the wicket. Flynn's partnerships of 77 for the second wicket with McIntosh, after the early loss of opener Jamie How (10), and 71 for the fourth wicket with Ryder steered the home team into a strong position.
Flynn swapped places with Ryder in the New Zealand batting order Thursday as the selectors backed his sound technique to fit at No.3 and Ryder's strokeplay to flourish at No.5. They were right on both counts.
Flynn took charge of the innings, calming McIntosh who had been unsettled by his slow start. The left handed opener struggled for 139 minutes to make 34, then threw away his wicket, exhibiting the mixture of application and carelessness which typified New Zealand's innings.
Ross Taylor came and went quickly for 15, hitting three boundaries and also squandering his wicket. Ryder, first with Flynn then Brendon McCullum (4 not out), reached his 50 from 87 balls and settled the innings again before stumps.
Gayle kept the West Indies in the match with his bowling, sending down 20 overs and removing McIntosh, Flynn and Taylor. Lionel Baker and Brendan Nash, who making their test debuts, bowled without success.
- NZPA
