NZ and SA draw as rain washes out final day

Heavy rain ended any chance of a result in the first Test between South Africa and New Zealand but Ross Taylor’s team may have come away with a hint more confidence than when they first set foot on University Oval in Dunedin.The hosts were soundly beaten in the one-day series and few people expected them to fare much better in the Tests, despite having won three of their previous four matches, though two of those were against Zimbabwe.However, the bowling of Chris Martin and Doug Bracewell in the first innings, coupled with the manner in which Taylor and Brendon McCullum curbed their attacking instincts with the bat to resurrect their second, showed the hosts could be competitive in the three-match series.If New Zealand’s batsmen had become the slightest bit complacent after facing Zimbabwe’s attack, the South African pace bowlers soon knocked that out of them.South Africa, who could have taken top spot in the Test rankings with a 3-0 series win, turned the match their way when captain Graeme Smith and Jacques Kallis both scored centuries and combined for a 200-run partnership that virtually batted the home side out of the match by the end of the third day.New Zealand slumped to 55 for two in their second innings and were in danger of losing the match inside four days before McCullum (58 not out) and Taylor (48 not out) steadied the ship.

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NZ and SA draw as rain washes out final day