ROUND FOUR
Saturday 13 to Tuesday 16 December 2025
- Hagley Oval, Christchurch - Canterbury v Auckland Aces
- Cobham Oval, Whangārei - Northern Districts v Wellington Firebirds
- University of Otago Oval, Dunedin - Otago v Central Stags
The red-hot summer of Henry Nicholls continues.
The Canterbury captain produced his biggest first-class score, carrying on from his overnight 87* to score 226 in Canterbury’s mammoth 534/8 declared against the Auckland Aces today — and this just a fortnight after he scored a century in each innings against Otago in Dunedin.
Nicholls warmed up for the season with an unbeaten 150* for the BLACKCAPS’ Test side in Zimbabwe (in August), and has celebrated two one-day Ford Trophy centuries already this summer (from five rounds) with an unbeaten 117* against Otago and 138 against the Aces — both of whom are no doubt sick of the sight of his bat.
Nicholls’ previous best score for Canterbury was an unbeaten 171* just last season, and he now needs just one more ton in 2025/26 to equal Michael Papps’s Canterbury record for most first-class centuries in a Plunket Shield season.
Nicholls and Rhys Mariu (whose 147 marked a welcome return to form) shared a 271-run stand: it’s the new Canterbury second-wicket partnership record, while the Canterbury total sits in the team’s all-time top 15.
It's also their highest total at Hagley Oval.
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Unsurprisingly, it’s put the Aces under the pump, having been rolled for 138 in their first innings, and now listing at 37/3 heading into day three, and still 359 runs behind overall.
Mariu’s return to form will feel particularly welcome after a run of scores that reads 15, 2, 14, 2, 0 and 12 from his first six Plunket Shield innings this season.
The Auckland Aces had headed into this fourth round as the competition leader, with sister team the Auckland Hearts leading the Hallyburton Johnstone Shield.
The Hearts have now been bumped down to third after a brutal weekend at the hands of Northern Districts, and it appears the Aces’ grasp on the top rung of the Plunket Shield ladder is slipping - with resurgent Otago also in a dominant position over the Stags in Dunedin.
Form from the last round has been turned on its head in this last round of matches before Christmas, the Stags fresh off a big win over Canterbury but now following on today in response to Otago’s first innings statement of 416/7 declared.
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Otago fought back from a tough first session on Saturday's first morning courtesy of a career-best 151 from Max Chu.
The keeper-batter steadily built a 164-run sixth-wicket partnership with captain Luke Georgeson (80), followed by another century stand for the seventh with Ben Lockrose who reached his own career best unbeaten 72* at eight.
Lockrose then took three wickets and Danru Ferns four as they dismissed the Stags for 224 in 61.4 overs, for the full set of eight first innings bonus points.
The Stags will go back to work on Monday at 18/0 in their second attempt, still 174 runs behind.
In Whangārei, Northern Districts are again locked in a more even contest in which the respective captains have traded centuries.
Wellington Firebirds skipper Nick Kelly provided the opening day’s highlight with his knock of 111, his team reaching stumps at 308/7 — but they were soon all out for319 this morning.
ND spinner Tim Pringle snaffled 4/38, and rookie James Naylor 4/74.
Northern was 287/3 in reply by the end of today, after captain Jeet Raval’s 108 in a 209-run opening stand with consistent Henry Cooper (88).
It was Kelly’s 13th first-class century and Raval’s 24th, ND set to resume day three trailing by just 32 runs with seven wickets in hand.
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