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Sports correspondent & historian with |
Hardcore Western Bay of Plenty cricket fans have begun the countdown to the return of test cricket to the Bay Oval on Thursday, December 18.
New Zealand will engage in a cricket contest, scheduled for five days with their West Indies counterparts, in the third encounter of the three-match test series.
The term “test match” was originally coined in 1861, with the visiting English cricket team testing itself against Australian colonies.
Test-match cricket belongs to the fans who yearn for the more traditional approach of two innings per side, spread over as many as five days of cricket action.
Test cricket is a recent addition to the Bay Oval season schedule.
The first test at the Blake Park international cricket venue was played against England in November 2019.
Since then, Pakistan, Bangladesh, England and South Africa have gone into battle with the Black Caps at the Bay Oval.
Once considered by many as having long periods of boring non-action, tests today have benefitted from the attacking approach of Twenty20 cricket.
There is no better example than the new approach by batters than the list of Bay Oval test centuries.
The initial 2019 contest between “our” Black Caps and England set the standard of batters posting big scores on the Bay of Plenty premier ground.
An England first-innings target of 350-odd runs proved of little consequence, as the hosts ran riot with their willow weapons in declaring at 615 for the loss of nine wickets.
BJ Watling blasted his way into Bay Oval immortality with the first double century on the Blake Park wicket.
Batting at number six, Watling belted 24 fours and one six in his 667 minutes at the crease.
Further high honours were achieved in a partnership of 261 with Mitchell Santner, who wrote his own piece of Bay Oval history with 126 runs before being dismissed.
The last test at the Bay Oval, in February 2024, produced the ground’s second double century when Rachin Ravindra stroked his way to 240, before being removed to a tumultuous reception.
Few grounds (if any) around the world have produced two double-centuries in just five matches.
The most welcome news to emerge from the build-up to the West Indies encounter is the return of local cricket legend Kane Williamson to the test arena.
Williamson has made the Bay Oval his own, with three centuries in four appearances at his home-town cricket headquarters.
Seven innings have produced 434 runs, with his best being 129 against Pakistan.
A further highlight was a rare century in both turns at bat (118 and 109) when South Africa paid a visit to the Western Bay of Plenty ground in 2024.
While the Bay Oval has produced an avalanche of test runs, it also provides fertile returns for a determined bowling attack.
Papamoa’s Neil Wagner, who built a cult following at Blake Park, was the first to take a five-wicket bag in the initial test at the Bay Oval.
Ebadot Hossain was the playmaker in one of the biggest upsets in NZC history, taking six wickets for 46 runs when Bangladesh beat New Zealand at the Bay Oval.
Pending fair weather, cricket fans can look forward to five days of intriguing cricket action when the first ball is bowled on December 18.