New Zealand captain Stephen Fleming, who once owned an appendix to cricket's records which delineated his difficulty in converting half centuries into centuries, has been exposed to the century bug this season and found it virulent and infectious.

The century Fleming made at the Basin Reserve today for Wellington against Central Districts and in his first first-class match for Wellington, was his 18th in first-class matches, his eighth in all games this year and his sixth in an enlarged season of first-class cricket in New Zealand, Middlesex and Australia.

Fleming made 115 in and shared with Matthew Walker, who recorded his maiden first-class hundred, a partnership of 161 for Wellington's seventh wicket which allowed them to declare at 326/8 and which was a record for that wicket for Wellington against Central Districts.

Central Districts reached 7/0 in their first innings and in only two overs before stumps which were brought forward by nine overs because of bad light.

Wellington resumed this morning at 110/4 and with the guidance of Fleming and Walker, who batted together for 196 minutes, reached a commanding position at the end of a day punctuated by rain. The Central Districts bowlers and fieldsmen were forced to toil through an almost profitless day on which the Basin Reserve was swept with gale force winds and regular passing showers.

Fleming appeared for Wellington in this match, in a rare provincial first-class appearance, because he felt the need after time in England and Australia to bat for a length of time in New Zealand conditions. His confidence about his batting form is near the highest level of his career, boosted by his good form in Australia and he wanted to increase that sense of confidence through acclimatisation.

Run-making has not been easy over the past two days and Fleming also faced the responsibility of leading Wellington's recovery from a difficult position after they had lost the toss and been asked to bat on the game's first day.

They were 39/2 when he came to the wicket and variously 64/3, 66/4, 131/5 and 145/6 when Walker joined him at the crease. The pair batted together for much of the day, from 10 minutes before noon till almost 6pm and through a serious of disruptive stoppages caused by rain.

Fleming lacked his characteristic fluency through the last two hours of yesterday's final session and for some of the morning but began to score more freely, to bat with more scope and fluidity in his anchoring partnership with Walker in the afternoon.

In part, Walker set the example. He was the first Wellingtonian to find the boundary with any frequency, particularly with flat bat shots through square leg and midwicket, and his expansive approach brought Fleming to a more adventurous approach and a higher tempo.

For Walker, who was unbeaten on 100 when Wellington declared, today's innings was both a consolation and a vindication - compensation after his dismissal for his previous highest first-class score of 98 against Canterbury at the Village Green last season and a demonstration that he deserves respect as a batsman.

Walker had to contend with a number of disadvantages today including the wind which, while most trying for the fielding side, still disturbed the balance of the batsman and - at a crucial late stage in his innings - with a malfunctioning scoreboard.

When the electronic scoreboard faltered late on a day of petty frustrations, Walker manged to keep track of his own score and was one of a few people in the ground to be certain of the importance of the singles that took him from 98 to 99 and then to 100. Wellington declared immediately afterwards.

"When we went back out after the rain we knew we had eight or 10 overs and I went from 66 to 85 to 90 quite quickly," he said.

"I didn't really know what my score was for a while. They put 90 on the board and from that point on I was pretty sure and I did my best to keep track.

"I've always felt I'm a better batsman than I've showed. I used to open the batting for Central Districts when I first started and last year I batted five or six for Wellington. I know I can hold a bat and I wanted to prove myself to a few other people, to show I know how to wield the stick. I've always wanted a first-class hundred.

"Personally, I've always seen myself as a batter who can bowl. This was the perfect opportunity to prove it. We were 145/6 when I came out there so I knew I had some time and some batting to do and I got to bat with the captain of New Zealand. What more can you ask."

Fleming had shared an overnight stand of 65 with Chris Nevin who was the first Wellington batsman out today, in the 54th over of the innings, for 26 when Wellington was 131/5. James Franklin stayed with Fleming only briefly and was out for six when they were dangerously poised at 145/6.

Walker, who has always counted himself an under-achiever with the bat, became the perfect foil for Fleming. He batted from the start with a mixture of solidity - caution when it was needed - and with the patience to wait for the looser ball. He punished short pitched bowling which was easy prey on such a slow wicket on which forceful scoring from the front foot was more difficult.

Fleming, whose only nervous moment came yesterday when he was 14 and when he survived Michael Mason's confident appeal for lbw, managed eventually to unleash some powerful drives, one in particular through cover off the luckless Mason.

"It was good just getting back to grafting on a slow wicket," Fleming said.

"I wasn't comfortable last night or this moring but it was always going to be difficult on a wicket of this pace.

"It was good to get the feel of it. It's right next to the Test strip and so it now I have a good feeling about it. I've just felt really good about the majority of my game lately, setup through execution. I felt confident before the tour of Australia and things eventually came right for me there.

"I'm feeling more and more confident and I'm starting to see things working for me."

Fleming's innings took away the initiative Central had enjoyed at the end of the first day and for some time today and awarded Wellington a commanding position in a match which is likely to face further weather interuptions.

Wellington waited till Walker had made his century before declaring but were frustrated in their attempt to have 11 overs at the Central batsmen last night by the encroachment of bad light.

Central coach Dipak Patel admitted Fleming's innings had changed the course of the match.

"It was one of the best knocks I've seen him play at first-class level," he said.

© CricInfo