Tim McIntosh bounced back from the ignominy of his first Test pair with a battling century on day one against India.
India held up on opening day in Hyderabad
New Zealand opener Tim McIntosh bounced back from the ignominy of his first Test pair with a battling century on day one of the second Test against India.
The left-handed opener crafted a gutsy 102 before falling to Zaheer Khan in the penultimate over of the day as the Black Caps reached 258-4 at stumps.
McIntosh was ably supported by Martin Guptill (85), the pair sharing a plucky 147-run partnership for the second wicket after Brendon McCullum had fallen early in the piece.
With the first Test of the three-match series ending in a draw in Ahmedabad, both sides will view the second day as a huge opportunity to take control of the series.
Docile
After winning the toss, touring captain Daniel Vettori had no hesitation in batting first on another docile track in Hyderabad.
There was a touch of life in the pitch early on, Sre Sreesanth (1-60) making the breakthrough with a ball which spat at McCullum and caught his edge through to Mahendra Singh Dhoni behind the wicket.
But that was as good as it got for India in the morning session, McIntosh and Guptill putting on an assured 71-run partnership before the lunch break.
The pair, who both passed 50 shortly after the break, stretched their stand to 147 before Guptill fell towards the close of the session after a 160-ball innings that included nine fours and a six.
The right-hander was trapped leg before by Pragyan Ojha (1-60) after he shuffled across his stumps and missed a ball that straightened to hit leg stump.
That brought Ross Taylor to the middle and he looked untroubled until the reintroduction of Zaheer (2-41).
Vital
The left-arm seamer tempted Taylor into a dab outside off stump when on 24 and Dhoni did the rest behind the stumps.
McIntosh continued to milk the spinners and, after surviving a strong lbw shout from Harbhajan Singh, brought up his second Test century with a single down the ground from the same bowler.
He and Jesse Ryder (22 not out) looked as if they would be returning to carry on their fine work on day two, however India struck a vital blow in the penultimate over when Zaheer claimed his second wicket of the day.
Playing for stumps, McIntosh pushed forward tentatively and dragged the ball back onto his wickets to the home side's delight.
