Not many cricketers score 137 not out in their Test debut and find themselves relegated to support cast status.

After the final day of the drawn second Test against India, New Zealand allrounder Jimmy Neesham wondered if he would become the regular subject of pub quiz questions: Who was at the other end when Brendon McCullum scored the Black Caps’ first triple century?

Neesham, 23, reached 100 just moments before McCullum’s magic moment.

“I ended up being the entree to the main course. The crowd had a practice session of standing up and clapping,” he said.

“It was a bit surreal, especially having Baz at the other end chasing such a momentous milestone.

“To be in a situation where the focus is not all on you helped me to handle the pressure.”

He played the aggressor role in a 179-run stand after waiting more than six hours for the McCullum-BJ Watling sixth-wicket partnership to end.

Neesham unleashed an impressive array of attacking shots that suggests he can thrive at Test level.

“A hundred on test debut is something I’ve thought of more than any other thing in life to this point,” he said.

“And to witness history in front of your eyes on debut is something that will live with me forever.”

Neesham became the 99th player to score a debut Test ton and the 10th for New Zealand. His 137 not out is a world record for a No.8 batsman on debut.

His 33 in the first innings of 192 was the Black Caps’ second-top score, while he bowled specialist batsman Rohit Sharma for a duck to claim a lone wicket with his medium-fast seamers.

Selected ahead of legspinner Ish Sodhi, Neesham’s performance will provide a quandary for the New Zealand selectors ahead of the mid-year Test series in the West Indies.

Corey Anderson has already forged one allrounder berth, leaving Indian captain M S Dhoni regretting his country’s inability to unearth a similar type of player to the strapping Kiwi pair.