After a hard fought draw at the Hagley Oval in Christchurch, New Zealand and West Indies are set to face-off in the second Test match at the Basin Reserve in Wellington. Hosts New Zealand had a golden opportunity to start with a win after dominating for the major part of the Test match but were held off by a spirited West Indies side who showed tremendous character to draw the Test match batting for more than 160 overs.
New Zealand will be led by Tom Latham and they have injury concerns forcing to bring reinforcements in the side. Matt Henry, Nathan Smith and Mitchell Santner have been ruled out of the series while Tom Blundell is a doubtful starter with hamstring issues. Mitchell Hay has been called in as cover for Blundell while Kristian Clarke and Michael Rae have been called into the squad with Blair Tickner already there and set to play at the Basin Reserve.
No such problem for West Indies as they have no injury concerns and will likely go in with the same XI that played the first Test match. Can they back it up with another solid display and trouble the Kiwis? Only time will tell.
Overview
The stage is set for the second Test match to begin in the 3-match series as New Zealand and West Indies are set to face off at the Basin Reserve in Wellington from December 10th, 2025 at 3:30 AM IST onwards. The series stands at 0-0 after the West Indies showed resilience grit and determination to draw the first Test match after battling for 163.3 overs showing great character as New Zealand who were down to two main bowlers struggled to take wickets on a flat deck.
At the Hagley Oval in Christchurch, it was New Zealand who were asked to bat first by West Indies and did decently through Kane Williamson’s half-century and Michael Bracewell’s 47 to post 231 on the board with wickets shared all around by the West Indies bowlers. In reply, West Indies lost the plot with bat despite fifties from Shai Hope and Tagenarine Chanderpaul as the lower middle order was wiped out for 167 to give a handy first innings lead to the hosts with Jacob Duffy picking a five-wicket haul and Matt Henry 3 wickets.
New Zealand drove home the advantage after that as superlative tons from Tom Latham and Rachin Ravindra both scoring huge daddy hundreds and useful contributions from others took New Zealand to 466/8 declared despite the veteran Kemar Roach picking up a five-wicket haul. Chasing an improbable 531 for the win, West Indies got off to a shaky start and were reduced to 72/4 at one stage and we felt the end was near there and then.
But what followed was something magical as Shai Hope stood up and scored a magnificent 140 but he fell in the morning session of Day 5. Thereafter, it was Justin Greaves who stole the show with his magnificent maiden Test double ton and was ably supported by Kemar Roach as the veteran fast bowled showed guts to fight it out there and remain unbeaten on 58 off 233 balls while Greaves made 202 off 388 balls as West Indies reached 457/6 in 163.3 overs to hang on for a draw. New Zealand were down to two bowlers with Henry and Smith injured and could not finish the job with Duffy picking 3 wickets.
New Zealand led by Tom Latham has had to make changes to the squad with Nathan Smith, Matt Henry and Mitchell Santner ruled out and Tom Blundell highly doubtful with the hamstring scare. Mitchell Hay has come into the side as a wicket-keeper cover for Blundell while Kristian Clarke and Michael Rae has been called into the squad with Blair Tickner already in the squad likely to get a game while Daryl Mitchell might come back after his long injury lay-off.
West Indies led by Roston Chase have no such problems and may well go in with the same XI that featured in Christchurch unless there is a last minute change to the team. They will be buoyed and confident with the draw and would like to carry on the good work. They have lacked consistency in the past and would like to do well and push New Zealand further and not make things easy for them. The stage is set for an interesting face-off at the Basin Reserve, Wellington.
Head-To-HeadÂ
New Zealand and West Indies have faced each other in 50 matches with New Zealand winning 17 of them and West Indies 13. 20 matches between the two teams have ended in draws. It is 8-2 in New Zealand’s favour in recent times with the last match ending in a draw.
Pitch & Weather ReportÂ
The pitch at the Basin Reserve in Wellington is known for early assistance to the pace bowlers, making the first few hours crucial in the match. The surface offers great help to the fast bowlers at the start, offering them good pace, movement, and bounce, especially in overcast or windy conditions. However, as the game settles, the pitch becomes more comfortable for batting, allowing set batters to play their strokes with confidence.
The weather for the Test match in Wellington are expected to be cold and partly cloudy. Temperatures are likely to be between 18- 20 degrees Celsius. The humidity will be around 89% with the wind blowing at a speed of 18 km/hr.
Predicted/Possible Playing XIs of both sides
Here, we will predict the possible playing XIs of both sides.
New Zealand XI: Tom Latham (c), Devon Conway, Kane Williamson, Rachin Ravindra, Daryl Mitchell, Mitchell Hay (wk), Michael Bracewell, Zak Foulkes, Jacob Duffy, Kristian Clarke, Blair Tickner.
West Indies XI: John Campbell, Tagenarine Chanderpaul, Alic Athanaze, Shai Hope, Roston Chase (c), Justin Greaves, Tevin Imlach (wk), Kemar Roach, Jayden Seales, Ojay Shields, Johann Layne.
Key Players to watch out for in this clash
Kane Williamson: New Zealand’s best batter Kane Williamson missed out at the Hagley Oval. Yes, he got a fifty but did not get a hundred. He will be the man in focus yet again to score the runs for New Zealand. He will be determined to prove a point in Wellington and get a good knock under his belt. Ideally, he will want a hundred but have to work hard to get to that mark.
Jacob Duffy: With Matt Henry and Nathan Smith both injured, the onus will be on Jacob Duffy to lead the attack as it will be a new look attack for New Zealand. Jacob Duffy is more experienced than the other bowlers and the onus will be on him to lead from the front. He had a good test at Hagley Oval but lacked support from the other end and so, it was a bridge too far for him. He hopes to do well and get support from the other end.
Shai Hope: West Indies best batter in current form, Shai Hope has been in rich vein of form for a long time. He had a great ODI series and started the Tests well. He got a fifty in the first innings and then scored a masterful ton which went a long way in West Indies saving that game. He will hope to do well and carry this West Indies innings forward with another good knock and in turn put the Kiwis under more pressure.
Kemar Roach: The most experienced bowler for the West Indies aged 37, Kemar Roach has had a good outing in the first Test. He bowled his heart out in both innings and got a five-wicket haul in the second innings. Then he showed real guts and determination to score 56* and faced 233 balls to keep New Zealand at bay to draw the game. He would want to perform with the ball and contribute as an when possible with bat in hand as well as he is the lynchpin of this West Indies team.
Key Stats/Records to look forward to in this clash
- New Zealand have played 9 Tests against the West Indies at Basin Reserve winning 6 of them and losing 2 while drawing one.
- West Indies’ last win at Wellington was way back in 1995 and since lost each of the following 5 Tests and 4 of them were by innings defeat and the remaining was a 10-wicket loss.
- Kane Williamson is the leading run getter at this venue with 1538 runs at an average of 64.08. He has scored 5 centuries and six half centuries.
- Tim Southee is the leading wicket-taker at Basin Reserve with 63 wickets at 34.04.
Predicted/Possible Outcome of the Match
It is difficult to predict a winner of the match at this stage especially after West Indies’ spirited performance. New Zealand have been depleted in their resources as well. It gives West Indies a chance but they have to play out of their skins to win this Test match. Despite all the hurdles, we feel playing at home will help New Zealand and they should come out on top. So, we are giving New Zealand slight favourites at this stage.
Let’s wait and see how the Test match indeed pans out from here and who comes out on top at the end of the Test match.
Also Read: NZ vs WI: Justin Greaves’ Maiden Double Ton Helps West Indies Earn a Draw