This will go down as a great Test victory: Williamson

Kane Williamson, the New Zealand captain, reckoned that his side's victory against Pakistan in the second Test at Hamilton on Tuesday (November 29) was one of the greater wins he's been part of. The hosts needed nine wickets in the final session and a draw appeared the most probable result, but the Asian side capitulated and handed New Zealand a 138-run win. There were no demons on the day five surface as evidenced by the Sami Aslam-Azhar Ali stand. Pakistan's opening pair negotiated the new ball comfortably and did not lose a wicket in the first session on the final day. New Zealand were made to sweat to claim the first wicket and it came in the 60th over after a 138-run stand. "That surface was pretty good for batting," Williamson said after the game on Tuesday (November 29). "That certainly showed when the first new ball didn't do a huge amount. They batted very well and we weren't able pick up those early wickets. Only thing we could do was stick with it and try and control the game. To get that breakthrough - which took a long time - we did have to stay patient." The home side had declared late on day four and given themselves close to 101 overs to pick up ten wickets. They also ensured that Pakistan had a sniff of the total, leaving them with 369 runs to win and level the series. "If you look back to yesterday and discussions around declaration in terms of giving the opposition an opportunity to track down the total and play a few shots - that perhaps worked in our favour," Williamson said. "It was a big target. To chase it down, you have to play very well. They were getting themselves into a position - nowadays, with T20 cricket, you give yourselves 30 overs and think about what you can chase. That seemed to be how they were taking down the total. "Where we were really good in those first two sessions is keeping the run rate down below two. It kept pushing the required rate up a bit higher, and made them go hard a bit earlier. That presented us with a few opportunities. Pakistan are a very good side who know how to bat time, so perhaps we were fortunate to get nine in the last session." While Pakistan were going for the chase, it was the wicket of Sarfraz Ahmed which turned things in favour of New Zealand. The wicketkeeper was promoted up the order to keep the scorecard ticking, but the ever eager Sarfraz risked a second run and was caught short of the crease. That wicket opened the floodgates to the middle and vulnerable lower-order. "The wicket of Sarfraz was a big moment, but I guess when you take nine wickets in a session, they are all pretty big moments," Williamson pointed out. "It all happens pretty quickly. With the new ball around the corner, we thought if we could open up an end, and get a new batsman out to face the new ball, we would be in with a slim sniff. The feeling at tea time and now is pretty contrasting. This will go down as a great Test victory. For it to completely flip-turn was something pretty sudden, certainly." After a 3-0 whitewash in India, New Zealand's series victory, according to Williamson, sets them up perfectly for the busy summer of cricket ahead. The play five more Tests at home; two versus Bangladesh and three against South Africa. "It was going to be a big challenge coming home from India and a tough series against South Africa. The guys picked themselves up," Williamson said. "I suppose we went back to the drawing board with how we'd like to play our cricket at home. Sometimes the baggage from previous results can be tough to get past, but the guys were fantastic. They had a couple of days off and they came back fresh, raring to go. They're all looking forward to a big home summer."