New Zealand reached 400 for 5 after 105.1 overs against Ireland in Belfast on day two of the men's Test, moving from 86 for 4 to a position of command after Dean Foxcroft and Tom Blundell put on 100 for the fifth wicket. Ireland had chosen to field first after winning the toss at 11:00 BST, but the morning session was shaped as much by who was missing as by who was scoring.

Mark Adair, who had taken three wickets on day one, did not appear for the morning session because of a stomach complaint, leaving Ireland to bowl with three Test debutants in the attack. That made the recovery harder to contain once Foxcroft settled into a debut fifty and Blundell drove on to 150. By the time New Zealand moved past 100 overs, they were scoring at 3.73 an over, a rate that reflected how quickly the innings had changed after the early wobble.

The innings had looked vulnerable when New Zealand slipped to 86 for 4, and Ireland had every reason to believe the morning could tilt their way. Instead, the Foxcroft-Blundell partnership drained the pressure out of the contest and turned a live position into a long day in the field. For Ireland, the immediate concern is whether Adair will be fit to return, because without him the gap in experience is plain, and New Zealand have already shown they can punish any lapse.

What happens next now looks straightforward enough: Ireland must find a way to break this stand and stop the innings from running away before New Zealand can turn 400 for 5 into something even more damaging.