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Alex Chapman: The signature rhythm of Latham's 14th Test century
Alex Chapman • December 5th, 2025 9:47 am
Tom Latham raises the bat in recognition of his 14th Test century for New Zealand | Photo: Chris Symes/Photosport
There were clear contrasts to the performances of the two main men of day three of the first Test between the Blackcaps and the West Indies.
One was motion and spectacle, the other calm and grounded.
One of flash and flamboyance, the other serious and stern.
Both exuding confidence and control.
Day three was all about batting. The conditions, the pitch, and the performance, as Rachin Ravindra and Tom Latham batted and battered the Windies out of the game.
And like that of Lennon and McCartney, or maybe for a different audience, Iron Man and Captain America, they shared the spotlight in their own different ways.
Tom Latham delivers a captain's knock in the first Test vs the West Indies | Sport Nation Cricket
For Latham, it was the end of a drought that stretches back almost four years to Boxing Day 2022 in Pakistan - it was also his first century on New Zealand soil since January of the same year.
Since that ton in Karachi, Latham had passed 50 eight times in 38 innings, one every 4.75 innings, call it one every five bats. So, not terrible, but also, not ideal, and not to the standards that have now been set for him.
But it was clear how much that knock, at his home of Hagley, meant to him.
Latham rarely shows emotion.
Latham and Ravindra's partnership lasted 279 runs | Photo: Andrew Cornaga/Photosport
He’s stoic in his approach, he takes it all in his stride, but that was thrown to the wayside when he tonned up - there was dubitation and delight, but also an enormous exhalation of relief; as he lifted his helmet, the weight was lifted.
He already sat among the greats, and one knock doesn’t cement a spot. But a 14th Test ton and now 6000 runs, the fourth New Zealander to reach the mark, perhaps adds validity to the argument.
Latham’s place in the side wasn’t under pressure, but he surely felt the pressure to perform.
And like that of McCartney, he performed to his own signature rhythm.
Tune into The Opening Stand with Alex Chapman - 9am on Sport Nation ahead of each day's play during the Blackcaps vs West Indies Test series.
Luke Ronchi following the Blackcaps' Day 3 batting masterclass | Sport Nation Cricket
