On day four, Sodhi and Williamson kept Pakistan wicketless in the first session while New Zealand declared the innings after Williamson completed his double hundred, and at stumps, Imam was batting on 45, night watcher Nauman staying with him on 4.
On day four, alongside Ish Sodhi, who scored a career-best 65, Kane Williamson added 159 for the seventh wicket. The two batters kept Pakistan wicketless in the first session, which appeared to have borrowed the laziness from a winter morning. In 32 overs in that session, New Zealand added only 79 runs, with Sodhi’s contribution being more than Williamson’s.
However, post-lunch, both batters, especially Williamson, increased the scoring rate. Sodhi raised his half-century with a four off Abrar. In the next over, Williamson directed Mir Hamza to the deep-third boundary to get to his 150.
Shortly afterward, Williamson first whipped Nauman to the fine-leg boundary and then used his feet to hang him over mid-on for another four. The change in the approach meant the first ten overs after lunch got New Zealand 47 runs.
Mohammad Wasim bowled a barrage of short balls to Sodhi, starting around the wicket and then switching to over. He even hit Sodhi on the helmet.
Nauman changed to over the wicket and started bowling outside the leg stump. Williamson countered that with the reverse sweep, getting consecutive boundaries to keep the scoreboard moving.
Pakistan accepted the third new ball when it opened up. Hamza got delivered an opportunity immediately, inducing an outside edge of Sodhi’s bat but it flew for four through the empty second-slip region.
The one that carried into Sarfaraz Ahmed’s gloves shortly afterward, off the same bowler, nobody appeared to notice. That was the second life for Sodhi; Sarfaraz had earlier dropped him down the leg side of Nauman.
Sodhi went past his last best of 63 but fell soon after, miscuing Abrar to mid-off. Southee didn’t keep going long either and was also taken at mid-off, off Nauman. In the next over, Abrar dismissed Neil Wagner to finish his five-for as New Zealand lost three wickets in two runs.
Williamson was on 186, and with No. 11 Ajaz Patel for the company farmed the strike as much as possible. On 195, he skipped down the track to Abrar and chipped him wide of long-off for four. A single on the next ball took him to the double hundred. New Zealand declared once he arrived at the achievement.
Imam-ul-Haq and Abdullah Shafique started solidly against a new, turning-from-the-rough ball. Throughout the 31 overs New Zealand bowled in the evening, they had spin basically from one end, mostly from both.
Ajaz shared the new ball with Southee, who bowled just three overs in his first spell before throwing the ball to Michael Bracewell.
It was Bracewell who broke the 47-run opening partnership when Shafique skipped down the track and hit one straight to mid-on. Sodhi managed a late blow, catching Shan Masood lbw for 10. At stumps, Imam was batting on 45, night watcher Nauman staying with him on 4.
