Cricket: Canterbury fight back through giant partnership

A giant partnership between centurions Shanan Stewart and Kruger van Wyk has rocked Canterbury from the back to the front foot in their Plunket Shield cricket match against Central Districts in New Plymouth.

The visitors could yet complete that rare cricketing achievement of winning outright after following on as they established a 209-run lead by stumps on the third day at Pukekura Park.

It will be hard to achieve on a pitch that has flattened out, which Stewart and van Wyk took full advantage of in an unbroken sixth-wicket stand of 228.

It lifted Canterbury to 400 for five after they followed on 191 runs behind the hosts, having been skittled for 223 yesterday.

A tiring Central attack could do little as Stewart reached 137 and a more aggressive van Wyk a career-best 122 in a partnership that has lasted just under four hours.

It is the in-form Stewart's sixth first class ton and the 27-year-old is also closing on his career-best 161, which he scored against Northern Districts in Rangiora last week. His average this season currently sits at 73.4, having climbed past 500 runs.

Wicketkeeper Van Wyk peppered the short boundaries 20 times -- hitting four more fours than his partner -- in compiling his fourth first-class hundred.

The pair are closing on the record sixth-wicket stand for Canterbury, the 293 shared by Peter Fulton and Neil Broom against Otago in Dunedin five summers ago.

Fulton was one of the early wickets to fall this morning as Canterbury resumed at 26 for one and were reduced to 172 for five, with Ewen Thompson the best Central bowler taking two for 79.