Mount Maunganui in Bay Oval rolled out one of those classic New Zealand pitches - indistinguishable in colour from the lush outfield. A green strip of doom for anyone looking to bat time. Tom Latham however, chose not to be hoodwinked by the appearance of the 22 yards and took it upon himself and his team to bat first. Roston Chase gleefully accepted his opposite number's perceived bravery, hoping for his army of impressive fast bowlers to make early incisions. To their credit, they got the ball to move off the pitch and in the air, beating the bat of Latham and Devon Conway multiple times in an engaging first half hour. But on a sunny morning, the opening pair saw off the early nip and dug their heels into what eventually turned into a desultory effort from the visitors.

West Indies have endured many humbling days of Test cricket in recent times, but Thursday doubled down and sapped them out, both morally and physically. After the first eight overs, where pacers mixed up their lengths well and beat the outside edge of both the left-handers' bat repeatedly, West Indies experienced a sharp vicissitude of fortunes - created by the erring quicks who couldn't keep up the pressure. The rest of the morning session was chanceless as Conway and Latham locked in for what was about to become a long alliance. They took New Zealand to 83/0 in the first session, and notched up their fifties on the other side of the Lunch intermission. Conway's came in an over from Roach where he tormented the pacer by driving a full ball down the ground, swivel-pulling a short ball through mid-wicket and punching a full toss straight for the third boundary. Latham, who carted Anderson Phillip for a six over fine-leg, got to his fifty three overs after Conway did. A brief rain break forced the players indoors. But even the 20 minutes of regrouping wasn't enough for West Indies to successfully course-correct.

Play resumed and the New Zealand pair casually picked up from where they left off and soldiered on. West Indies lost control completely in the middle session, bowling 29 overs without a maiden in them. Latham and Conway, who'd made 83 in 28 overs in the first session, managed 133 in the second in 29. Boundaries came more easily in this period as Chase looked out of depth and options. Against the spinner, Conway brought up his hundred - sixth in Tests - by on-driving a tossed up full delivery.

Source:
https://www.cricbuzz.com/cricket-news/136946/conway-latham-stand-headlines-day-1-on-a-bay-oval-green-top