Shane Bond celebrates getting Ramnaresh Sarwan out leg-before in Auckland on Sunday. (AFP)

Auckland: A devastating three-wicket spell by Shane Bond put New Zealand on the brink of an unlikely Test victory on Sunday as the West Indies squandered a 148-run opening partnership.

At close of play, the West Indies had been reduced to 246 for eight, still needing 45 runs.

West Indies openers Chris Gayle and Daren Ganga appeared to have set their side up for the first overseas Test win in more than two years as they played the good balls cautiously and punished anything loose to notch up half-centuries.

New Zealand captain Stephen Fleming dropped Gayle when he was on 58 and Ganga was caught on 42 off a no-ball from Chris Martin.

But the pair saw off the cream of the bowling and cruised to within 131 runs of the 291-run target, forcing Fleming to turn to part-time bowler Nathan Astle.Nathan Astle’s first ball was dispatched to the boundary, but with the second he had Chris Gayle caught by Fleming for 82 to start the batting collapse.

Bond came back and hit Ramnaresh Sarwan on the helmet, forcing him from the field. He followed immediately by bowling Brian Lara first ball to complete a disastrous welcome to New Zealand for the master batsman.

In the first innings, Bond had Lara caught first ball. After rain had wiped out the first session of play, the West Indies went to tea on 160 for two and still hoping they could win the Test on the fourth day.

But two hours later and two overs before the scheduled close, they were thankful to be offered the light.

“We would be disappointed to lose from here. We obviously know the game’s in our favour,” Daniel Vettori said. “They still have a chance to win it, so we can’t say that the game is ours, but we took the game away from them as opposed to them losing it.”

With the West Indies on 211 for four, Bond returned to dismiss Dwayne Smith, a revived Sarwan and Dwayne Bravo in successive overs and reduce the West Indies to 221 for seven. Jerome Taylor was left to play out the last two balls of the day with Ian Bradshaw.