Faf du Plessis (23), leading South Africa in the absence of injured captain AB de Villiers, found a dependable ally in Temba Bavuma (46) only to fall to a sensational one-handed catch in the gully by Kane Williamson.
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Who do you think will win the Test and go on to clinch the series? Credit to New Zealand, they bowled really well, especially in the first session.
But when the captain’s stoic resistance was ended four overs after the resumption, it opened the door for the Black Caps to claim three more scalps and complete a very solid days work.
“Quite a few of us got in but unfortunately didn’t manage to capitalise and make it big to get us to a better total”, he said to the media after bad light stopped play on Friday.
South Africa were 236/8 at stumps on day one.
Boult got rid of two of South Africa’s most assured batsmen – opener Stephen Cook and Hashim Amla – and bored their way into a still-fragile middle-order, which could not ride out pressure for long enough to post substantial scores.
Both captains had been more unsure than normal what the tacky-looking early season surface would do first-up and that was reflected at the toss.
Elgar had fallen for 19, pushing hard at a delivery from Doug Bracewell that he should have left, and edging a comfortable catch to second slip.
Duminy became yet another victim to a Neil Wagner short ball when he top-edged a pull to Boult on the deep backward square leg boundary at 102-3.
Amla, by contrast, was caught behind off an inside edge when a ball swung in to him.
With Southee, Boult and Bracewell patiently toiling away in good areas, the Proteas pair ground their way to 146-4 at tea as the session reaped just 52 runs at less than two-an-over.
Alongside the promoted JP Duminy, Amla’s famed patience and technique was in evidence as he reached 50 having scored off just 18 of 62 deliveries, hitting 10 fours and playing brilliantly through the covers especially.
Now South Africa find themselves in what Amla has admitted is “not a great position”, as they look to “scrape some runs tomorrow morning”, against a New Zealand attack that can see the finish line and understands that it needs to approach it as Boult did on day one.
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New Zealand seamer Neil Wagner, who picked up three wickets for the visitors praised fellow pacer Trent Boult, who bowled a brilliant spell up front to set it up for his side.
