Their celebrations need some work but Kane Williamson reckons he and Hamish Rutherford can become long-term fixtures at the top of the New Zealand Test cricket batting order.
In a line-up brimming with veterans, first drop Williamson, 22, and opener Rutherford, 23, offer a glimpse of the future in a ball-blunting area where the Black Caps have long struggled.
Rutherford’s brilliant debut innings of 171 in the drawn first Test against England at Dunedin last week was especially welcome for Williamson.
Accustomed to an early arrival while the red ball is still shiny, he enjoyed watching on as Rutherford and Peter Fulton put on 158, the best New Zealand opening standing for nine years.
Williamson eventually reached the crease to find a Test rookie with no need for advice.
“Hamish was coping perfectly well. He batted outstandingly and it’s a great moment for him, especially ticking off the 100 so early,” he said.
“He’s very aggressive but that’s good to bat with. You can go about your business and he’s at the other end scoring quite quickly.”
Williamson says it’s a contrast that clicks neatly and which he believes can be just as effective in the second Test starting in Wellington on Thursday.
He also hopes the pair can celebrate more milestones mid-pitch although not in such awkward manner as when Rutherford reached three figures at University Oval.
In a comical scene that has been a popular subject of television replays, Rutherford went to shake his batting partner’s hand but there was hesitation before Williamson finally got his way with a hug.
“I went straight in for the hug, he wasn’t too sure,” Williamson recounted.
“It’s always awkward because lads always go (hug) to one side. So you both go to the same side … but it’s OK, doesn’t matter, he scored a hundred.”
Williamson says Rutherford wants to prove he can score well on pitches with more zip than last week’s benign surface.
A bouncier Basin Reserve should please the classy England pace attack but left-handed Rutherford is unlikely to be nervous, Williamson said.
“That (century) was obviously a big deal and a lot of people will make it a big deal but he’s certainly the same bloke that he was a week ago and just enjoys being among the lads.”
Williamson produced a grim match-saving innings at Wellington last summer, scoring 102 not out against South Africa on the final day of the drawn third Test.
He hopes for a repeat against an England bowling attack he rates as equal to South Africa’s as the world’s most potent in New Zealand-style conditions.