State Championship 2007-08 1st round

Wellington beat defending champions

Cricinfo staff

November 15, 2007

Matthew Bell's first-innings 81 helped set up Wellington's victory © Getty Images

Mathew Sinclair's unbeaten 243 secured first-innings points for Central Districts as they played out a draw with Otago at Napier. Sinclair's innings was the highest individual score in Central Districts' first-class history and he could have gone further had they not declared at 405 for 5. Aaron Redmond (73) led Otago's reply but they fell for 357 after Robbie Schaw's spin earned him 4 for 57. Another dominant display from Central Districts followed, with Peter Ingram's 140 not out guiding them to 305 for 4 declared. That gave Otago a chase of 354 and Redmond (102) and Leighton Morgan (82) put them on track with a 161-run opening stand before Schaw rattled them again. He claimed 5 for 130 as Otago made it to 314 for 6 before the umpires called time.

Canterbury struggled without their former captain Chris Harris, conceding two points in a draw with Auckland at Christchurch. Andre Adams claimed 6 for 42 and was the danger man for Auckland, rattling through Canterbury's top order, which fell to 27 for 5 in their first innings. After a lower-order fightback their new captain Kruger van Wyk declared at 180 for 8 - trailing by 237 after Richard Jones (80) top scored in Auckland's 417 for 8 declared. Auckland's second innings did not go quite as planned - they closed it at 93 for 5 - but the target of 331 was too steep for Canterbury. Their chase began badly as they fell to 0 for 2, and Todd Astle opted for defence after that, finishing on 75 from 207 balls as Canterbury reached 179 for 5.

Player of the Week Mathew Sinclair
Sinclair built his reputation as a double-century specialist early in his Test career and his 243 not out again proved he likes long stays at the crease. He batted for nearly nine hours, broke the all-time Central Districts record for the highest score, and might have made a triple-hundred if given the chance. The timing was also spot on for Sinclair, who sneaked into New Zealand's contract list this season, as the national team's top order has been under fire in South Africa.

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Players/Umpires

Andre Adams

Dewayne Bowden

Aaron Redmond

Robbie Schaw

Charlie Shreck

Mathew Sinclair

Series/Tournaments

State Championship

Teams

Auckland

Canterbury

Central Districts

New Zealand

Northern Districts

Otago

Wellington