New Zealand vs England analysis: Harry Brook hits century as England take upper hand
Harry Brook scored an unbeaten 132 as England recovered from 71-4 to near parity against a wasteful New Zealand on day two in Christchurch.
Brook put on 151 for the fifth wicket alongside Ollie Pope who made 77 after a sublime new-ball spell by the hosts was undone by six dropped catches, with an unbroken Brook-Ben Stokes stand of 97 guiding England to 319-5 at stumps and just 29 runs behind New Zealand’s first-innings total.
Sports News Blitz’s cricket writer Dom Harris evaluates the state of play in the first Test…
Top order struggle again in testing conditions
Unlike on day one where England were unable to yield any assistance from the pitch, the overcast conditions in the morning session of day two were ideal for seam bowling - and New Zealand’s quartet were relentless as they extracted significant early movement and regularly beat the outside edge.
Zak Crawley’s miserable record against New Zealand - in which he averages just a touch above 10 - continued as he was struck on the pads playing all around a full nip-backer by Matt Henry on his home ground without scoring.
That brought Jacob Bethell to the crease, who you couldn’t help but feel a little sorry for as he headed out to the middle on Test debut.
The 21-year-old was the surprise selection call despite not having a first-class hundred to his name - but looked watchful and assured in demanding conditions, patiently waiting 13 deliveries for his first run.
Two confidently-struck boundaries in three balls against fellow debutant Nathan Smith looked to have set the left-hander on his way, before Smith - who was having difficulty with the front foot - produced a sublime ball from around the wicket to draw a faint edge.
The 26-year-old Smith, who impressed in helping Worcestershire preserve their Division One status, then claimed the prize scalp of Joe Root on his 150th Test appearance. Root chopped onto his stumps later that over to signal lunch with England in a spot of bother at 45-3.
Ben Duckett had a touch of good fortune in surviving the morning session, being dropped by Tom Latham in the slips, but his luck ran out when he could only top edge a hook shot to Devon Conway at long leg off the bowling of Will O’Rourke for 46 not long after the interval.
6ft 5ins Surrey-born O’Rourke was causing the batters difficulties with his extra pace and bounce, with a number of streaky boundaries coming through and over the top of the slip corden as England lost four wickets inside 22 overs.
England have often been referred to as ‘flat-track bullies’ under the Bazball philosophy, enjoying home comforts and scoring freely when the pitch offers very little to the bowlers.
They muscled 823 on a placid wicket in the first Test against Pakistan, then failed to pass 300 when the pitches were offering large amounts of turn.
On Friday, similar problems arose but this time with a seaming ball - and England’s top order looked for the most part uncomfortable against an admittedly high quality New Zealand bowling attack.
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New Zealand bemoan missed opportunities
For the second day running, New Zealand have let England off the hook by failing to capitalise on a strong morning showing. After being put into bat on the first day, the hosts squandered a strong platform as they slipped from 199-3 to 252-7 in an innings filled with soft dismissals.
Shoaib Bashir’s confidence-boosting figures of 4-69 was perhaps a generous return, whilst Chris Woakes went wicketless in his 20 overs as talk around his place in the team intensified.
Brydon Carse was undoubtedly the pick of the England bowlers as he claimed the final two wickets required at the start of day two to finish with career-best Test figures of 4-64. Glenn Phillips was left stranded on 58 not out as they added 29 to their overnight score.
The hosts then seized the initiative on day two by reducing England to 71-4, but after giving Duckett a life earlier on, went on to drop centurion Brook four times which could have sent the game in a much different path.
Brook’s first life came on 18, flashing hard at a wide ball which was shelled by Phillips at gully which would have seen the score 77-5.
Brook had 41 to his name when Latham put down his second chance of the day, before Conway was the third culprit with the Yorkshireman on 70.
His innings could’ve finally ended on 106 had wicketkeeper Tom Blundell held on to a flick down the leg side, with replays confirming a review would have overturned the leg-byes call.
Pope was less fortuitous as his full-blooded cut shot was breathtakingly grabbed by Phillips at gully, diving one-handed superman-style to his right, but by then England had settled and dominated the final session by adding 145 runs for the loss of that solitary wicket.
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Harry Brook shines again and a timely Ollie Pope reminder
As the sun came out and conditions eased in front of a packed out Hagley Oval, Brook and Pope counter-punched with their partnership of 151 ticking along at nearly five an over.
Brook, who scored 329 in four innings on his last visit to New Zealand, took advantage of dropped catches as he brought up his half century with a six.
With England still trailing by 126, any hopes of Phillips’ moment of magic to dismiss Pope sparking New Zealand back into life were quelled as Brook cut Southee to the boundary to complete his seventh Test century, passing 2,000 Test runs in the process and now possessing a remarkable average of 93 away from home.
Pope has long faced questions around his technique and registered a much-needed half century off just 59 balls - only the second time he has passed 50 in 12 innings.
Batting at number six as part of an England reshuffle, Pope’s score of 77 was also more than he could muster on the recent tour of Pakistan combined, which included a two-ball duck as a temporary opener in England’s total of 823.
This caps an eventful few months for Pope, who led the side in Stokes’ absence in which he was criticised for his poor use of the DRS system, batted at number three and now six, as well as taking the gloves in this match due to late injury to Jordan Cox.
With specialist wicketkeeper Ollie Robinson drafted in for the remaining two Tests, it will remain to be seen if Pope’s blemish-free innings behind the stumps will see him maintain that role for the rest of the series.
The expected return of Surrey team-mate Jamie Smith to the fold next year also raises questions around which position best suits Pope.
Bethell’s performances at number three may go someway to deciding that but should Pope’s game be considered more suitable to the middle order, then that would likely require Root to move up to three which he appears reluctant to do.
With wickets in the shed and two set batters at the crease, England will be hopeful of building a sizeable first-innings lead.
As for the Black Caps, they will still feel right in the contest with the new ball just around the corner.
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