KEY POINTS:
As the vultures circled to pick over the carcass of New Zealand's record test cricket loss Daniel Vettori was left to contemplate the harsh realities of international sporting contests between two mismatched rivals.
"I am extremely disappointed," Vettori said shortly after his side lost to South Africa by an overwhelming margin of 358 runs after lunch on the fourth day at the Wanderers in Johannesburg today.
"It's not where you want to be in your first test as captain."
That may have been stating the obvious, but it was also equally clear that New Zealand could not live with the South Africans after posting scores of just 118 and 172 against fired up fast bowler Dale Steyn, who finished with career-best match figures of 10 for 93.
Vettori quickly identified his side's batting as the biggest cause of concern.
"The batting has been a bit of a struggle throughout the tour but we've got some really good players and we're hoping we can keep pushing forward.
"We know that to compete over here we have to keep building big totals," he said.
By a margin of runs, it was New Zealand's heaviest defeat in history, surpassing the 299-run loss to Pakistan in Auckland in 2001.
For new test skipper Vettori, the magnitude of the defeat was crushing but there is now the very real risk of it being repeated in the second test of the two-match series, which starts at Centurion on Friday.
New Zealand will be without pace spearhead Shane Bond for that game. He is returning home with a grade three abdominal tear and it could be as much as six weeks before he is ready to play again.
Auckland's Kyle Mills is being sent to South Africa to cover for Bond's departure and just to compound matters allrounder Jacob Oram is in serious doubt for the second test.
Oram has a hamstring injury which saw him bat with a runner today when he contributed 40, which, with Vettori's 46 not out, helped only to delay the inevitable.
The selectors have shoulder-tapped Central Districts batsman Jamie How to join Mills on the long haul flight to South Africa as the squad look to cover their bases heading into the second test.
Senior batsman Stephen Fleming played the first test despite a thumb injury and ended it with a sore forearm as well after being struck while batting.
Also, wicketkeeper Brendon McCullum was hit several times on the body during his second innings of 26 and opener Michael Papps batted at No 7 today after a long absence in the field due to an upset stomach.
The team as a whole have every reason to feel somewhat queasy looking ahead to the second test, and there is little to recommend them based on what unfolded at the Wanderers.
They resumed the fourth day on 57 for three, needing to score an improbable 531 or bat two full days to save the game.
They dragged the match out only until after lunch as Steyn and fellow fast bowlers Makhaya Ntini and Andre Nel made the most of a pitch offering bounce and showing signs of wear.
Steyn, 24, had a word of warning for the tourists after taking five for 59 today to complement his five for 34 in the first innings.
"I'm looking forward to Centurion. Last time we played them there we won so it's in their memory bank," he said.
The previous Centurion test between the two teams in April, 2006, also marked the first five-wicket haul for Steyn.
Captain Graeme Smith praised Steyn for a "superb effort" but said his man-of-the-match performance had been aided by the efforts of fellow pace bowlers Ntini and Nel as well as seamer Jacques Kallis.
- NZPA
