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Batsmen Michael Papps and Shanan Stewart put Canterbury in a formidable position on a record-breaking opening day of the national championship cricket final against Northern Districts in Hamilton yesterday.
Having been sent in, Canterbury lost Todd Astle in the opening over of the day, leg before wicket to Graeme Aldridge. But 27-year-old Papps, the country's premier runmaker in the State Championship, and Stewart then shared a 243-run second wicket partnership. At stumps, Canterbury were 260 for two, with Papps on 109 and Andrew Ellis on three.
It was a Canterbury second-wicket record against all comers - breaking the old mark of 210 set by Walter Hadlee and Frank O'Brien in 1940-41 - and Papps became the first batsman to score four centuries for the province in a first-class season. His 886 runs are the provincial record for a season, overtaking Gary Stead's 852 in 2000-01.
The pair had the occasional nick fly wide of despairing hands. After batting 4h 10m, Stewart was bowled by Hamish Marshall for 118 shortly before stumps.
