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Ben Duckett celebrates reaching his century at Trent Bridge - Gareth Copley/Getty Images
Relief was etched on the face of Ben Duckett as he celebrated a comeback century on his home ground by pumping his fist, ripping off his helmet and roaring “yes”.
You can understand the emotion after a troubled year for a player whose slide was emblematic of the decline of the Bazballers: an average of 21 over seven Tests of which England lost five.
Duckett left Australia in wretched form, overweight and with his reputation tarnished by video of him worse for wear on the streets of Noosa as the image of the England team nosedived.
He lost his partner Zak Crawley in the post-Ashes churn and Duckett was told to knuckle down in no uncertain terms by Rob Key and Brendon McCullum.
At 31 he was at a crossroads but took the right path. Duckett turned down the IPL to work on his batting with Peter Moores at Notts, lost weight and rediscovered his drive. This 113, a seventh Test hundred, was a statement innings of controlled aggression that added fuel to a storming revival against New Zealand. There were shades of the England of old as they motored to 223 for two at just under five an over.
Duckett was out roughly 24 hours after New Zealand’s opening stand had finally been broken by Ben Stokes. From 317 for none to an under-par 438 all out, New Zealand have fallen flat on their faces, lacking an Aussie ruthlessness to bury England when on top and pile pressure on a management team fighting for their jobs.
Inevitably, Stokes had a hand with four for 70, including a 250th Test wicket, to rally his attack in red hot conditions on a flat pitch.
Duckett and Jacob Bethell built on their captain’s resilience. With Bethell 74 not out, a first fifty in a home Test, and Joe Root settling in nicely on 21, England trail by 215 with the match in the balance.
Duckett was dropped on eight at slip by Henry Nicholls off Nathan Smith, a simple chance that should have been gobbled up, but he deserved the luck after a horrible run out at the Oval, when he was called short by his partner Emilio Gay on 36 just when his touch had returned.
It was a crucial mistake by Nicholls with Gay already gone for nought, caught down the leg side off Will O’Rourke. England would have been two down with eight runs on the board.
Duckett seized on his opportunity, motoring to his first fifty in 14 innings from only 40 balls with 10 fours as he played straighter to the quicks and did not go chasing the ball. This was the Duckett of old, a player with 12 fifties quicker than a run a ball in his career; he is the Bazball tone-setter when playing well in the same way that Jason Roy once was for Eoin Morgan’s World Cup winners.
Duckett thumped his thigh pad twice when he reached fifty, telling himself the job was not done. Locked in with Bethell, the runs flowed. The pair raced along at six an over as New Zealand were unable to settle or build any pressure. The century stand took only 16.5 overs and England reached 150 in 24.1, their fastest to that mark in a home Test.
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Duckett played straighter and with controlled aggression having spent April working on his technique with Peter Moores at Notts - Andrew Boyers/Action Images via Reuters
There was a Duckett edge on 74 off Santner that eluded first slip, but that was the only alarm. Bethell was far more fluid at the crease as he looked finally in tune with red-ball cricket. He exudes calm at all times, moves into the ball with good balance and scratched an itch by making a contribution in the first innings of a Test for the first time – he had not made more than 16 before this.
Duckett moved to 98 with a flick to fine leg for four off O’Rourke and his hundred with a clip to the leg side off Santner, cheered to the rafters by a faithful Notts crowd rewarded for being singed in the sun.
It was his first hundred in 22 innings. The last one set up a famous run chase against India at Headingley when Duckett was described as the best all-format opener in the world by the England team’s social media account – a dash of hubris that ran into a wall in Australia.
His hundred came off only 88 balls with 18 fours, the joint second-fastest by an England opener. He targeted Mitchell Santner with his sweeps and reverse sweeps, which forced Tom Latham to return to his quicks because his spinner could not hold an end.
New Zealand were in a mess. Seamer Blair Tickner had to be substituted for Zak Foulkes after suffering concussion from a blow to the helmet when batting against Jofra Archer.
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After trying to bowl despite being hit on he head by Jofra Archer, Blair Tickner suffered dizziness and nausea and has had to be replaced by Zak Foulkes - Andrew Boyers/Action Images via Reuters
Duckett tucked into a reduced attack and it was a surprise when he was out, chopping on Smith, a wicket from nowhere ending a run-a-ball stand for the second wicket of 179.
Bethell was happy to go through a period of slower scoring after Duckett’s dismissal. He seems so unfussy at the crease in a way his predecessor at No 3, Ollie Pope, was never quite able to crack.
New Zealand threw away such a strong position to bat England out of the Test. A total of 550 to 600 looked a possibility as Tom Latham and Devon Conway built a monumental opening stand, but the next best partnership was just 42 as they lost their last eight wickets for 77 from the moment of Rachin Ravindra’s brainless dismissal in the final moments of day one.
England started badly – Jamie Smith dropped nightwatchman O’Rourke on 19 when he was wrong-footed by an edge off Stokes – but New Zealand were conservative, going nowhere. Stokes’s eight-over spell of hostile bowling on a dead track pinned them back. He had Daryl Mitchell caught behind off a fine edge, O’Rourke off a top edge and bounced out Santner, the DRS showing the ball hit the sweatband of his glove on the way through to Smith.
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Mitchell Santner was given out caught after the ball hit him close to the wristband of the glove - Screengrab/Sky Sports
Shoaib Bashir deserved success after his fielding put Ravindra on strike in the final moments of the first evening and opened up the game. He had Tom Blundell leg-beforem when sweeping, and a caught and bowled off Smith was smartly taken. Bashir may well have a big part to play if the pitch breaks up and the third innings shapes the Test. The game is nicely poised.
Duckett: Post-Ashes weight loss key to my hundred
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Ben Duckett credits weight loss to finding form - Mike Egerton/PA
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Ben Duckett believes extensive fitness work and weight loss helped him make an “emotional” first Test hundred in more than a year on a scorching hot day at Trent Bridge.
Duckett cashed in on Henry Nicholls’ drop when he had eight to make an 88-ball hundred, his first in 12 Tests after a poor Ashes winter.
He said: “I was quite emotional, obviously my home ground and I haven’t been scoring the runs I would have liked, so after being in the heat for a day and a half, to go out there and score a hundred at this ground, it meant the world to me.”
Duckett had a difficult tour of Australia, failing to pass 42 as England crumbled, and was criticised for his poor conditioning. He revealed that a block of fitness work after the Ashes had helped him lose around 6kg of body weight, which aided him on a humid and still day at Trent Bridge, as temperatures exceeded 30C.
“I’ve certainly been doing a lot of fitness since I got back from the winter and certainly got my rewards today in the heat,” said Duckett. “It’s been a good block for me, a refresh after a tough winter.
“I started running. I had a four-week block when I got back from the winter when I didn’t necessarily hit many balls. It’s tough at times when you’re on the road, constantly playing all formats – you don’t get many windows where you can and lose the amount of weight I lost.
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Duckett (right) and Jacob Bethell put on a strong partnership in the Nottingham heat - Philip Brown/Getty Images
“For me now it’s really important I use that hard work I’ve done and maintain it. It’s something I’ve really enjoyed and it’s been great for my mental space and getting away from the game. I went to the gym and I ran a lot, and a bit of weight came off.
“It’s an area of my career where I haven’t necessarily helped myself and been great at. I mentioned it after the Ashes: I’m not getting any younger, so I want to keep doing this and keep having days like this for as long as I possibly can.”
Duckett reserved particular praise for captain Ben Stokes, who started England’s fightback in the match. He took the wicket that broke New Zealand’s 317-run opening partnership on Thursday evening, then three more in an eight-over spell on Friday morning as they lost all 10 wickets for just 121.
“We should be talking about the bowlers really,” Duckett said. “Coming in after fielding all day yesterday and it being hotter this morning, to do what they did, led by Stokesy. Ultimately we want to be a side that never gives up and wins from different positions. When Stokesy does that it’s pretty impossible for everyone else not to get on his back and do the same. It was an incredible morning for us.
“Stokesy makes things happen, he’s done that throughout his whole career. Today probably won’t get spoken about but it was another one of those incredible Ben Stokes performances.”
06:38pm
Close: ENG 223/2
A terrific performance by England to take six wickets for zip and then put on 223 at five an over for the loss of only two wickets to close to 215 behind after five-and-a-half hours of toil and strife on day one. Ben Stokes, Ben Duckett, Shoaib Bashir and Jacob Bethell with the major contributions but almost everyone played his part.
We’ll have Nick’s match report imminently and full coverage of day three from 10am on Saturday.
06:34pm
OVER 45: ENG 223/2 (Bethell 74 Root 21)
After Root pushes a single down to point Bethell again has a flash at a cut stroke off Foulkes and is beaten for the third time in the same fashion. Time to forsake the cut against such a naggingly accurate and bouncy bowler?
Nevertheless Bethell will be back tomorrow after defending the last two with a full face, nose right over the ball.
06:30pm
OVER 44: ENG 222/2 (Bethell 74 Root 20)
The penultimate over of the day will be taken by O’Rourke and, after Root eases a push into the offside and hares a single, Bethell harpoons a drive past the cover fielders who have thwarted him for the past half-dozen overs and slows to a walk as it blazes a trail to the boundary.
Not only double Nelson but Richie Benaud’s famous ‘chew-chew-chew-for-chew’.
06:27pm
OVER 43: ENG 217/2 (Bethell 70 Root 19)
Root times a forward defensive so perfectly that he shows off his bat-maker’s skill as the ball rifles through cover point for four. Foulkes didn’t deserve that but that’s what the great batsmen can do. Looks effortless.
06:24pm
OVER 42: ENG 212/2 (Bethell 70 Root 14)
A maiden for O’Rourke to Bethell, his third in 10 overs today. Bethell looked so out of sorts at the Oval but time at the crease weaves it’s spell but after this match ends it will be the white-ball series against India, the Hundred and no first-class match until the first Test against Pakistan on August 19.
This is an amazing picture of Zak Foulkes’ action. Brings to mind that quip about Jim Furyk’s swing, ‘like an octopus falling out of a tree’.
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Foulkes joins the Minstry of Silly Walks - David Rogers/Getty Images
06:19pm
OVER 41: ENG 212/2 (Bethell 70 Root 14)
Bethell, who was beaten when trying to cut in Foulkes’ first over, has another cross-bat swish outside off and the ball again whistles over the top edge. Blundell snaffles the heavy ball with such a light touch it beggars belief. Two singles dent Foulkes hitherto pristine figures.
06:15pm
OVER 40: ENG 210/2 (Bethell 69 Root 13)
Root twists his wrists to close the face and work O’Rourke for a single past the square-leg umpire, Bethell flicks another in front of square and Root ends the over with a third off a punch through cover.
06:11pm
OVER 39: ENG 207/2 (Bethell 68 Root 11)
Here’s the concussion sub, Zak Foulkes. He’s an 82mph merchant with a nagging line and length which means Blundell can also stand up to him. He bounds in round the wicket to Bethell, pitching it up, looking for swing and nip and beats Bethell’s attempted cut with good bounce.
The sub starts with a maiden. Latham brings back O’Rourke in the hope he can do what Archer and Atkinson managed at a similar point yesterday.
06:06pm
OVER 38: ENG 207/2 (Bethell 68 Root 11)
Root busily plays out a Smith maiden, defending as the skilful right-armer moves the ball both ways while not allowing Root out of his crease to cover it early because the keeper is breathing down his neck.
06:03pm
OVER 37: ENG 207/2 (Bethell 68 Root 11)
England bring the 200 up and close to within 36 of avoiding the follow-on which only a sadomasochist would enforce. After three singles, one a leg bye, plus a no-ball, Root whips his second boundary off his pads then glides a lateish cut down to backward point for a single. Sears thinks he has completed the over with a dot ball but has overstepped again and Root steers the extar delivery down to third man for a single. Twelve off the over with runs and extras.
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After trying to bowl despite being hit on he head by Jofra Archer, Blair Tickner suffered dizziness and nausea and has had to be replaced by Zak Foulkes - Andrew Boyers/Action Images via Reuters
05:55pm
OVER 36: ENG 199/2 (Bethell 66 Root 4)
If you had to place a bet on which area of the field Root would pierce to get off the mark you would put your hat if not your house on third man. And lo! It comes to pass, rising on to tiptoes to dab Smith down for four, his bat halfway between vertical and horizontal.
This is an excellent spell from Smith, testing Root’s defence with the inswinger before nibbling the next ball away as it just eludes the edge and thumps into Blundell’s right glove, standing up. That was an exceptional take.
05:50pm
OVER 35: ENG 191/2 (Bethell 66 Root 0)
Sears starts the last knockings of a punishing day with a maiden. He has wheels and looks a slippery customer when he gets it right. Bethell did time the pants off a cover drive but could not beat Nicholls who made a fine diving stop.
05:42pm
OVER 34: ENG 191/2 (Bethell 66 Root 0)
Bethell calls Root through for two when last week’s captain wasn’t so sure but he gets back to the non-striker’s end safely as Sears’ throw flies past the stumps.
With 50 minutes to go, on come the drinks for the last official break.
05:38pm
OVER 33: ENG 188/2 (Bethell 63 Root 0)
Sears has found his feet. Bethell drives him through cover for a single but Root can’t get him away and stays on nought.
05:36pm
OVER 32: ENG 187/2 (Bethell 62 Root 0)
Duckett uses the angle into his middle stump from round the wicket to whisk briskly through midwicket for four. The next ball is wider and Duckett tries to hang his bat out, open the face an steer it down to third man but is done by a bit of nip.
Root, on his Hundred home ground, which is an incongruous concept but factually correct, is greeted raucously and sees out the over as Smith probes away with the keeper up.
05:28pmWickets
Wicket!
Duckett b Smith 113 There be drag-ons. Having been on the field throughout so far in this heat for almost two days, he can be excused that weary stroke which lacked foot movement to a ball too wide just to reach for with his hands. The ball nipped back, too and took an inside edge through the gate. FOW 187/2
05:28pm
OVER 31: ENG 183/1 (Duckett 109 Bethell 62)
Sears returns after that bruising opening spell of three overs which went for 23. Bethell drives him for two and Duckett tickles a single off his ribs but those two scoring strokes add some respectability to his figures.
05:23pm
OVER 30: ENG 180/1 (Duckett 108 Bethell 60)
Blundell, standing up to Smith, tries to catch Bethell out when one from the right-arm quick spits up at him. Waiting for Bethell to raise his foot he whips off the bails, only Bethell never left the ground but we have to through the rigmarole of a spurious DRS check just the same.
Foulkes, who has been fielding for a while but will now be eligible to bowl, pulls off a terrific stop at backward point, chasing down Duckett’s choppy dab and clawing it back fromthe rope with a headlong dive, saving one run.
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Ben Duckett makes his seventh Test centurt and second at Trent Bridge - Mike Egerton/PA
05:18pm
OVER 29: ENG 174/1 (Duckett 104 Bethell 59)
It doesn’t rain, it pours for New Zealand. Smith runs in from mid-on to try to stop a quick single, shies at the stumps, misses and sends the balls rattling down for four buzzers and a rare Test five in the scorebook for Bethell. Santner must be raging at that but he’s either too polite or Smith too fierce to do anything more than sigh.
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05:12pm
OVER 28: ENG 165/1 (Duckett 101 Bethell 53)
Smith replaces O’Rourke. Bethell is struck by Latham’s throw as he tries to make sure he doesn’t steal a single and the New Zealand captain immediately apologises. When the next ball also goes to Latham, Bethell hams up his fear of being hit again.
Zak Foulkes will replace Balir Tuckner who is suffering from concussion after being hit on the head by Jofra Archer.
05:09pm
OVER 27: ENG 164/1 (Duckett 100 Bethell 53)
Duckett reaches his first Test century since two in back-to-back Tests against on this ground last May and against India at Headingley the following month. It’s his seventh overall and came off 88 balls. He celebrates as if it’s a catharsis after the Ashes, Noosa and all the vitriol. Bethell drives two through mid-on off Santner. The hard yakka tables have been turned on New Zealand.
05:03pm
OVER 26: ENG 161/1 (Duckett 99 Bethell 51)
Duckett survives the drinks break’s dark magic and NZ lose a review. The left-hander clips a single off his toes and, after O’Rourke oversteps, Bethell uses his wrists to flick a single to square leg with a vertical bat off the back foot.
Duckett helps a ball on his hip round the corner for four then moves on to 99 with another whip off his body for a single.
04:58pm
NOT OUT
Too high. Duckett actually had his foot raised off the floor when it hit him on the top flap.
04:57pm
NZ review
Duckett lbw b O’Rourke Looked high but then Bethell is quite the shorty.
04:54pm
OVER 25: ENG 153/1 (Duckett 93 Bethell 50)
Bethell moves to fifty off 60 balls by flicking Santner off his toes for a single. New Zealand players are leaving the field in relay for a breather, so oppressive is the heat. Dennis Lillee and his need for a fresh shirt after every spell seem a long time ago. Three more singles round off Santner sixth over which leave him with figures of nought for 43.
Drinks.
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04:50pm
OVER 24: ENG 149/1 (Duckett 91 Bethell 48)
O’Rourke tries to enforce some order with pace and precision, earning him four dot balls, then goes too short and watches the ball trampoline over Duckett and the keeper for four byes. The final ball is short but fuller than the last and sits up nicely. Duckett swivels and coshes it for four past deep backward square.
04:46pm
OVER 23: ENG 141/1 (Duckett 87 Bethell 48)
Duckett, the Dick van Dyke of the team, sweeps hard and square, cuffing Santner for four then uses his wrists to work two more runs through midwicket. Santner’s lack of red ball cricket is really showing now. His length is all over the shop. Duckett milks a single with a nurdle through square leg and Bethell pounces when Santner drops short to scythe a cut in front of point for four. They’re flying at more than six an over. If this carries on it would take them beyond 300 tonight.
04:40pm
OVER 22: ENG 130/1 (Duckett 80 Bethell 44)
The umpires check the ball and agree that it has gone out of shape. O’Rourke takes replacement and goes for a bumper to Duckett who is late on it and cracks it off the bottom edge into the pitch and past the stumps. The opener uses the angle to whip a single through midwicket and Bethell is also greeted with a bouncer – but he collars his, whacking it on the pull wide of fine leg for four.
04:36pm
OVER 21: ENG 125/1 (Duckett 79 Bethell 40)
When he’s purring, Duckett is Mr 360 against spin with his range of strokes, and the threat of his dexterity has forced Latham to spread his field. Duckett sweeps Santner for four, caressing it, but then Santner finds some grip and the edge of Duckett’s Gunn & Moore. The ball flies between slip and keeper for four. Slip, neither one thing or t’other, was too wide.
Blair Tickner, who was hit on the head while batting, is off the field with dizziness and nausea. There may be a case for a concussion sub.
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Ben Duckett makes hay at home - Mike Egerton/PA
04:28pm
OVER 20: ENG 115/1 (Duckett 70 Bethell 39)
England are giving Sears something of a cruel baptism, pasting him all around into the vast gaps. Bethell, playing himself back into nick with some help from generous bowlers, laces an extra-cover drive for four and milks a single into the onside to take the strike. Latham will have to turn back to Smith and/or O’Rourke.
04:25pm
OVER 19: ENG 109/1 (Duckett 69 Bethell 34)
NZ are in a flap with their field placings, with sweepers out so early in the innings and no discernible plan on getting them out other than wait for O’Rourke or a mistake.
Bethell dabs for two down to third man, carts Santner cross-batted through mid-on for a single and then Bethell square drives handsomely for his 13th boundary as the partnership reaches a century.
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04:22pm
OVER 18: ENG 101/1 (Duckett 64 Bethell 31)
An expensive start from Sears in his third Test. He made his debut two years ago and took four for 90 in the second innings against Australia at Christchurch. But he is too wayward in line and length in his first Test in England and Bethell whisks two through midwicket down to the sweeper and eases four behind square from a short ball on his hip. Three singles and a leg-bye are also taken which help England to three figures
04:17pm
OVER 17: ENG 91/1 (Duckett 62 Bethell 24)
Duckett is motoring along smoothly and starts Santner’s second over with successive fours, bothe overpitched. The first is too straight and Duckett whips it off his legs and then belts an off-drive to the boundary.
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04:11pm
OVER 16: ENG 82/1 (Duckett 53 Bethell 24)
Double change with Ben Sears being given the Stuart Broad End.
He’s a rangey, right-arm quick with a bustling action who bowls in the mid-80s. Bethell drives his first ball through the covers for two and takes a single when his soft hands guide an edge down to second slip which is tipped round the bar on the bounce by Latham to give them the chance of a run. After Duckett stirs the pot with a midwicket flick, Bethell climbs into a full toss and thumps a cover drive for four.
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04:07pm
OVER 15: ENG 74/1 (Duckett 52 Bethell 17)
We begin today’s last session with spin from the Radcliffe Road End. Santner with his left-armers and he is close to a wicket in his first over when Duckett sweeps hard and hits Ravindra, at short leg, on the hands as he turned turtle and took evasive action. It was more an impact than an attempt to catch and the ball falls to the turf before he can react.
03:47pm
Tea verdict
Fascinating session of Test cricket. New Zealand are still on top but England have carved a route back into the game. Tight and disciplined with the ball, they capitalised on some conservative New Zealand batting to dismiss them for a below par total of 438 – losing t10 for 121 from 317 for none.
England fought with the bat overcoming Emilio Gay’s duck to reach tea in a decent position, putting pressure on New Zealand bowlers by being aggressive but not reckless. Duckett was dropped at slip on eight but he deserved that luck after he was run out by his partner at the Oval when looking good.
His first fifty since last summer – a 14 innings drought – was brimming with intent and some superb strokes. This Test is shaping up nicely.
03:46pm
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03:44pm
TEA: ENG 73/1
England reduce the deficit to 365 having lost Emilio Gay for a duck in the second over. They have been rattling along in entertaining fashion but Will O’Rourke is a genuine threat and now that Tom Blundell is up to the stumps for Nathan mith, here will be tricky spells to negotiate for the last 150 minutes of play.
03:42pm
OVER 14: ENG 73/1 (Duckett 52 Bethell 16)
Blundell calls for the helmet and does come up to the stumps for Nathan Smith to pin Bethell in his crease. Bethell eases on to his front foot and takes a single to point.
Time for tea.
03:40pm
OVER 13: ENG 71/1 (Duckett 51 Bethell 15)
Tickner, perhaps because the umpire Rod Tucker has had a word or two about the proximity of his feet to the ‘red zone’ in his follow through, loses his line and length. Duckett smears a low full toss wide of the slips for four then drives for two to bring up his 17th Test half-century.
Tickner then goes even wider on the crease from round the wicket and sprays four byes down the legside. Tucker now gives him an official warning for running on he pitch as his left boot landed on a right-hander’s off-stump about 6ft down.
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03:35pm
OVER 12: ENG 60/1 (Duckett 44 Bethell 15)
Smith replaces O’Rourke to start a second spell. There has been an expert examination of Bethell’s technique by Mark Butcher and Kumar Sangakkara on Sky Sports, highlighting the little flaws that have crept into his game, particularly a trigger movement that wasn’t there in the Ashes. They conclude it’s simply a result of both a lack of red-ball cricket and trying to overcome a bad trot. For all the time in the nets, a good innings in the middle is better than any tinkering. Suddenly it just clicks.
Smith helps his batting rehab with a long half-volley outside off that Bethell punches gloriously through cover for four. That’s the fifty partnership.
03:29pm
OVER 11: ENG 56/1 (Duckett 44 Bethell 11)
Out comes the cleaver as Duckett flays a cut stroke high and wide of point for four. Tickner posts men out on the hook but tries the bluff by sticking to a good length and Duckett works him away for a pair of twos through midwicket.
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03:26pm
OVER 10: ENG 48/1 (Duckett 36 Bethell 11)
Maiden from O’Rourke to Bethell bookended by two down the legside that the left-hander leaves. He also ducks a bouncer and defends a straighter, fuller delivery with an angled bat but has his heart in his mouth twice when trying to leave but not withdrawing his bat quickly enough.The first time the ball thuds into the bottom edge and just misses off-stump, the second thuds into his gloves. Judging O’Rourke’s length is extraordinarily difficult. What a fine bowler he is.
03:21pm
OVER 9: ENG 48/1 (Duckett 36 Bethell 11)
Blair Tickner, who has 22 Test wickets at 26.50, replaces Smith. Duckett goes up on his toes to dab a single through point and Bethell plays his best shot of the summer, albeit off a bit of a pie, a wideish half-volley that he absolutely lamps past point for four.
Here’s that Nicholls dropped catch:
03:16pm
OVER 8: ENG 42/1 (Duckett 35 Bethell 6)
Bethell pats O’Rourke off his hip for a single and the bowler tries to tempt Duckett to fall in a similar manner to Gay with one angling across his body but he leaves it alone. A fuller one on his legs is not a subject for self-denial and he clips it fine for four before ending the over with a controlled pull off a throat ball down to fine leg for a single.
03:12pm
OVER 7: ENG 36/1 (Duckett 30 Bethell 5)
NZ know that Bethell is a leg-before candidate to nip-backers from round the wicket and almost get him that way again but for a thick inside-edge. Bethell is batting out of his crease to try to counteract that and the keeper isn’t up to the stumps because Smith is quicker than Matt Henry.
Bethell tucks a single off his hip and Duckett then nails a square drive for four. The last ball of the over squares him up as he tried to work the ball to leg and it pops off a leading edge just short of the scrambling Smith.
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Ben Duckett hs hits even fours to reach 30 - DARREN STAPLES/AFP
03:06pm
OVER 6: ENG 31/1 (Duckett 26 Bethell 4)
Bethell can’t jab his bat across the line to work a straight one through midwicket but takes a leg-bye anyway. Duckett leans back to pulls O’Rourke’s short one witheringly through square leg for four then almost knocks himself off his feet by flashing hard at a wider one that whistles past the toe of the bat, it was so wide.
03:03pm
OVER 5: ENG 26/1 (Duckett 22 Bethell 4)
It’s 36C at Trent Bridge today, 1C hotter than a day at the Lord’s Ashes Test in 1975,1C cooler than a day at the Ireland Lord’s Test in 2019. Must have been day two as the ball hooped round corners on day one.
Duckett hangs back to drive square through point for four, whisks two off his pads and then nicks another four in the gap wide of third slip as the ball nipped away having got bigger on him than anticipated.
Duckett is parp-parping along in his old fashion but is also living dangerously against a skilful attack.
02:58pm
OVER 4: ENG 16/1 (Duckett 12 Bethell 4)
NZ’s opening bowlers are generating far more lift and carry than England’s. O’Rourke forces Bethell on to tiptoes to defend, threatening his edge and gloves. When he hangs one out wider Bethell chases it and drives streakily in the air past gully for four. NZ won’t mind that, I’m sure.
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O’Rourke has Gay caught behind - Gareth Copley/Getty Images
02:53pm
OVER 3: ENG 12/1 (Duckett 12 Bethell 0)
Duckett is given a life when Smith now gets one to lift off a fairly good length and veer in to the left-hander. Duckett fences at it and steers it to third slip where Nicholls drops a sitter. It was almost a pastiche of how not to catch, one hand on top of the other like a Venus fly-trap, that perpetually goes hungry.
Duckett makes the most of it by crashing a cover drive off the back foot for four the very next ball.
02:49pm
OVER 2: ENG 8/1 (Duckett 8 Bethell 0)
O’Rourke shares new-ball duties and starts with a couple of beauties to Gay, angling in from round the wicket and then both climbing and nipping away as Gay just about holds his hands in line. Another ball that nibbled away and was left is followed by one across his bows. He could not resist having a flick at it and is caught off the glove. Set him up for that.
Bethell has one ball to face and O’Rourke strikes the glove again, this one a punishing blow when it reared up off a good length.
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02:43pmWickets
Wicket!
Gay c Blundell b O’Rourke 0 Strangled, flicking at one angled across on to his hip and tickling it through to the keeper. FOW 8/1
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02:41pm
OVER 1: ENG 8/0 (Duckett 8 Gay 0)
Right here’s Duckett on his home ground, well adopted home ground as he’s one of the Northants diaspora, facing Smith, who takes the new ball in the absence of Matt Henry and Kyle Jamieson. Duckett averages 96 here after two 70s against West Indies and last year’s 140 against Zimbabwe and looked in decent nick until kebabbed by Emilio Gay in the first innings at the Oval.
Ben Stokes said yesterday in his interview with Michael Atherton that he had been overthinking his batting and the prospect of Test cricket being lost to him after the Rex Rooms rumpus has made him revert to ‘see-ball hit-ball’ when appropriate. Duckett seems to have drunk the same medicine and creams a pair of fours through the covers.
02:33pm
A thought from our columnist
02:32pm
Innings break
England took their first wicket at 5.24pm yesterday evening and have wrapped up proceedings in three hours and 40 minutes, two hours and 40 minutes since 11am on the second hottest day of Test cricket in England since 1881.
Now they have to bat well and do their talent justice to reward the captain and the bowlers’ unflagging commitment.
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02:25pmWickets
Wicket!
Sears lbw b Archer 0 Archer arrows a bouncer in to Tickner who tries to sway away and is hit on the head as he falls on his backside. After treatment the next ball is another short one that whistles past his nose as he falls on his tuchas again. Sears scuffs three through point and gets up the other end to watch Sears fall for a golden duck, pinned on the front dog in front of leg and middle. FOW 438 all out
02:22pm
OVER 114: NZ 435/9 (Tickner 1 Sears 0)
This wider line, a relatively minor adjustment, is working well for Bashir who takes two wickets in the over, the second of them from round the wicket while trying to stop Blundell farming the strike. When he caught Smith, Archer was having a drink delivered on the boundary edge and didn’t run in to congratulate him straight away after the dropped catch in the previous over. Stokes called him to join the huddle, which he did, bumping fists with Bashir and pointing to his drinks bottle as if to say I was having a swig not blanking you because I am still vexed that you spilt that catch.
From 317/0 to 435/9 has been a superb display of resilience in pitiless heat and on an unforgiving pitch with Stokes leading them from the front. Anyone who thinks he should be sacked for his onfield contributions is gaga.
02:15pmWickets
Wicket!
Blundell lbw b Bashir 30 Would have hit middle and off having pitched in line. Three reds. FOW 435/9
02:13pm
NZ review
Blundell lbw b Bashir Hit him flush on the foot when reverse sweeping but from round the wicket. Checking whether it pitched in line.
02:10pmWickets
Wicket!
Smith c&b Bashir 6 Takes a stinging return catch... at the second attempt when Smith whacks a drive straight at him. FOW 434/8
02:08pm
OVER 113: NZ 433/7 (Blundell 29 Smith 6)
Bashir drops Blundell at deep backward square. It was a tough chance off a hook and Bashir didn’t pick it up at first then sprinted in to launch himself forward, arms outstretched and he did get his hands to it about a foot above the ground but it burst between them before he had even landed heavily on his knees and elbows.
Archer puts his hands on his thigh and exhales deeply then almost winkles Smith out by cramping him for room around his ribs. The ball canons off his glove into the crease and spins back a couple of inches wide of leg stump, the thought of playing-on forcing Nathan Smith to hop back and ensure he was poised to kick it away. But he didn’t need to.
02:04pm
OVER 112: NZ 431/7 (Blundell 28 Smith 6)
Five good deliveries from Bashir, sticking to that wider line and beating Blundell with a big-turning off-break. The infield and the bowler do their jobs to stop singles until he finishes with a full toss that Blundell taps down to long on to pinch the strike.
02:01pm
OVER 111: NZ 430/7 (Blundell 27 Smith 6)
After zipping one away from Blundell who leaves it, Archer bangs one into the right-hander who plays it magnificently, rocking back to pull it behind square for four with a purist’s roll of the wrists. Four years ago Jonny Bairstow was told not to roll his wrists and he hooked England to victory. Blundell’s timing was so good that the ball bisected deep backward square and fine leg who were sprinting towards each other to try to stop it.
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He ain’t heavy, he’s my Bethell - Andrew Boyers/Action Images via Reuters
01:56pm
OVER 110: NZ 426/7 (Blundell 23 Smith 6)
Bashir comes on for his first over of the day after 22 yesterday. He starts by overpitching two and Smith flips the low full toss through midwicket for a single while Blundell squirts two past point by meeting the ball just as it bounced to squeeze it out. He gets out of the over with three dot balls, bowling six inches wider.
01:51pm
OVER 109: NZ 418/7 (Blundell 20 Smith 5)
The two right-handers work Archer’s first two balls into the onside for singles, one of them a leg-bye. He has a slip and leg slip as Archer gently cranks up the pace from 81mph to 83mph then bangs one in that climbs towards Blundell’s waistband and the Kiwi keeper-batsman deflects it square for a single hurriedly off his thighpad.
01:46pm
The players are back out
Ben Stokes is taking a break after that eight-over spell and has thrown the ball to Jofra Archer.
01:30pm
True leadership
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01:19pm
‘Stokes was brilliant’
01:17pm
Keep ’em waiting
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01:14pm
Nick Hoult’s lunchtime verdict
Decent morning for England, hanging in and fighting hard for three wickets just when it could have run out of control when Jamie Smith dropped a clanger. Ben Stokes’s energetic, aggressive eight-over spell before lunch brought three for 13 and slowed New Zealand’s scoring. England have a chance to keep them to a below-par score.
The error from Smith, dropping Will O’Rourke, was his second mistake of the Test and a sign of how difficult it is to miss a game and then slot straight back in without there being a consequence. From 317/0, New Zealand have lost seven for 101 in tough conditions for bowling and that poor shot by Rachin Ravindra in the final over last night really changed the momentum.
Lots of energy from England this morning. Stokes’s 250th Test wicket and lung-busting spell were exactly what you expect from him on a roasting hot morning.
01:12pm
Should Mitchell Santner have been given out?
I know it is out according to the laws of the game but it is stretching it a bit to say Santner ‘gloved’ that. The ball hit him above the wrist. Is it time to review the law so the ball actually has to brush glove and not a flap of sweatband material?
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Mitchell Santner was given out caught after the ball hit him close to the wristband of the glove - Screengrab/Sky Sports
01:08pm
Lunch
That was a terrific morning session for England, with New Zealand scoring 57 for 3 in 23.5 overs.
It started badly, when the nightwatchman Will O’Rourke was dropped while making an irritating 19. But then Ben Stokes came on to bowl and stuck two fingers up at negativity, fatalism, the heat, the flat pitch, the lot. His spell of 8-3-13-3 would have been a gem in any circumstances, never mind after the fortnight he’s had.
01:07pm
OVER 108: NZ 418/7 (Blundell 18 Smith 4)
Blundell survives an LBW appeal after falling over a delivery from Tongue. It was missing leg. That’s lunch!
01:00pm
OVER 107: NZ 417/7 (Blundell 17 Smith 3)
Stokes’ last over of the morning session is a slightly weary maiden to Blundell. Time for one more from Josh Tongue.
12:55pm
OVER 106: NZ 416/7 (Blundell 17 Smith 3)
Tongue bowls another maiden to Nathan Smith. For now Smith is just hanging in there - partly because we’re a few minutes from lunch, partly because the bowling has been very good.
12:51pm
OVER 105: NZ 416/7 (Blundell 17 Smith 3)
A seven-over spell in this heat would be beyond 99.94% of fast bowlers on the planet. Not Ben Stokes, who can’t get enough of hard yakka like this. He appeals wearily for his fifth wicket when Blundell pushes at a ball that is taken down the leg side by Smith. It missed the bat and came off the hip.
Stokes’s spell now reads 7-2-13-3.
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Ben Stokes has been immense - Mike Egerton/PA
12:48pm
OVER 104: NZ 415/7 (Blundell 17 Smith 2)
Josh Tongue replaces Gus Atkinson. No rabbit pie on the menu just yet, with Nathan Smith a very good Test No9, but he starts with an aggressive maiden to Blundell.
12:43pm
Sheer force of will
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Without Stokes, at the Oval, England put in a dreadful performance on the second morning after a so-so first day. With Stokes here, almost through sheer force of will, they have picked up three wickets this morning, and New Zealand have lost seven for 96 since his initial breakthrough.
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Mitchell Santner is bounced out by Ben Stokes - David Rogers/Getty Images Europe
12:42pm
OVER 103: NZ 415/7 (Blundell 17 Smith 2)
Nathan Smith defends solidly against Stokes, who runs off the field at the end of the over. Doesn’t look like there’s anything to worry about.
12:41pm
Stokes bowling as well as ever
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Of those who have taken 250 Test wickets, only Jacques Kallis has scored more runs than Ben Stokes. More topically, Stokes has bowled as well as he has ever done in the last year.
12:37pm
OVER 102: NZ 413/7 (Blundell 17 Smith 0)
A maiden from Atkinson to Blundell. Ben Stokes, who has bowled a marvellous spell of 5-2-10-3, is going to continue.
12:37pm
OVER 101: NZ 413/7 (Blundell 17 Smith 0)
Kumar Sangakkara, commentating on Sky Sports, thinks that was a mistake from the third umpire. I suspect it was mainly armguard with a bit of wristband. Either way, I’m not sure there is conclusive evidence to overturn the on-field decision.
England won’t care either way; they’re now taken seven wickets for 94 on a flat deck.
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Wristband, armguard or both? - Screengrab/Sky Sports
12:35pm
Stokes joins elite club
Only four man have scored 5000 Test runs and taken 250 wickets
- Sir Ian Botham England (5200/383)
- Kapil Dev India (5248/434)
- Jacques Kallis South Africa (13289/292)
- Ben Stokes England (7228/250)
12:31pmWickets
Wicket!
Santner c Bethell b Stokes 4 We really don’t deserve Ben Stokes.He’s dragging England back into this game almost singlehandedly and has just bounced out Santner to take his fourth wicket of the innings - and the 250th of his Test career. It was a nasty short ball that hit something, either the wristband of the glove or the armguard, and flew to Bethell in the gully. The third umpire decided it was the wristband. Santner - who was given out on the field and then reviewed - does not agree. FOW: 413/7
12:27pm
OVER 100: NZ 409/6 (Blundell 17 Santner 0)
Blundell gets his first boundary with a crisp cover drive off Atkinson. This innings is fascinatingly poised - another quick wicket and England are in, but if Blundell and Santner get through to lunch, New Zealand could still reach 600.
Blundell takes them past 400 with a firm pull for two, then hits two more boundaries - a soft-handed edge along the ground and another fine cover drive. Fourteen from the over.
12:20pm
OVER 99: NZ 395/6 (Blundell 3 Santner 0)
Will Macpherson reminds me that Stokes is now on 249 Test wickets. Only eight men have taken 250 or more: Anderson, Broad, Botham, Willis, Trueman, Underwood, Swann and Statham.
Nothing done in that over, with Santner getting solidly in line to anything dangerous. A maiden. Stokes is bowling a terrific spell: 4-2-6-2 are his figures this morning.
12:16pm
OVER 98: NZ 395/6 (Blundell 3 Santner 0)
New Zealand have a longer tail in the first two matches - no Jamieson, no Henry - but England need to break this partnership before they can offer any rabbit pie to Josh Tongue. Mitch Santner is a decent No7( who, as my colleague Rob Bagchi has just reminded me, made his only Test century against England at Mount Manganui in 2019-20.
* He’s batting No8 in this innings because O’Rourke came in as nightwatchman.
12:11pm
OVER 97: NZ 393/6 (Blundell 1 Santner 0)
Just bumped into Sir Geoffrey heading to the committee room for lunch in his shirt and tie. “I could get 50 on this pitch at 85.”
12:10pmWickets
Wicket!
O’Rourke c Gay b Stokes 19 Ben Stokes strikes again straight after the drinks break. O’Rourke top-edges a pull high into the off side and is easily taken by Emilio Gay. Stokes has three wickets and O’Rourke has just doubled his tally of Test runs in his 24th innings. FOW: 393/6
12:01pm
OVER 96: NZ 393/5 (O’Rourke 19 Blundell 1)
A maiden from Atkinson to Blundell. His line is usually excellent but in that over he was a bit too wide. Time for drinks.
11:57am
OVER 95: NZ 393/5 (O’Rourke 19 Blundell 1)
The new batsman is Tom Blundell, who made a fine century on this ground four years ago. He gets off the mark first ball, then Stokes beats O’Rourke with a beauty. This is classic Stokes, making things happen when conditions are all in the batsmen’s favour.
There’s a chance Mitchell didn’t edge that ball, that the spike was caused the bat hitting the pad. But it did line up perfectly with the ball passing the bat, and on Sky Sports, Stuart Broad says the noise sounded more like bat on ball than bat on pad. I guess we’ll never know.
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Jamie Smith and Ben Stokes discuss whether to review for caught behind against Daryl Mitchell. - Andrew Boyers/Action Images via Reuters
11:52amWickets
Wicket!
Mitchell c Smith b Stokes 11 Mitchell feels for a cunning cutter from Stokes and is beaten. Hang on, Stokes thinks there was a feather and has decided to review. He’s right! There’s a small spine on UltraEdge and Mitchell is on his way for 11. That’s brilliant from Stokes, both the delivery and the decision to review. Mitchell looks befuddled and clearly didn’t think he nicked it. That can happen sometimes, especially when the edge is so thin. FOW: 392/5
11:51am
Wheels could come off for England
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It feels like a day when quite a few wheels will fall off. What is it about the name James that makes England wicketkeepers drop chances? Smith is having just as bad a game as Rew did at the Oval. Or put it this way: Jordan Cox has been sent away from the squad to play for Essex but he might be back one day as an England wicketkeeper/batsman.
11:49am
OVER 94: NZ 392/4 (O’Rourke 19 Mitchell 11)
Atkinson replaces Tongue and starts with a beautiful delivery that straightens to beat Mitchell just outside off stump.
Replays of the dropped catch show that Smith’s weight was on the wrong foot, his left, which meant he had to change direction before he could dive. That lost split-second was decisive.
11:46amKey moments
OVER 93: NZ 391/4 (O’Rourke 19 Mitchell 10)
Oh lordy, it’s all going wrong for England. O’Rourke has been dropped by Joe Root off the new bowler Ben Stokes. Root was put off by Smith, who dived across him and may have got a touch on the ball. Even if he didn’t, his presence made the chance tougher for Root.
Replays confirm that the ball deflected off the gloves of Smith, which gave Root almost no chance. “Oh it’s Joe Root’s catch!” says Stuart Broad on commentary. Hate to say it but Smith’s wicketkeeping is becoming a problem.
The ball before he was dropped, O’Rourke flashed Stokes in the air for four. Bethell dived to his right at gully but couldn’t reach it.
Jamie Smith and Joe Root put down Will O'Rourke
Ben Stokes denied the first wicket of the daypic.twitter.com/zNum2x2ta2
— Sky Sports Cricket (@SkyCricket) June 26, 2026
11:40am
OVER 92: NZ 386/4 (O’Rourke 15 Mitchell 9)
A full ball from Tongue is edged in the air for four by O’Rourke. He scored 19 runs in his first 23 Test innings and has almost doubled that tally in the 24th.
11:38am
Irritation for England
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This O’Rourke effort is officially in irritating territory for England. In seeing off some of the second new ball, he’s also making batting easier for the batsmen to come.
11:35am
OVER 91: NZ 382/4 (O’Rourke 11 Mitchell 9)
O’Rourke won’t be cover driving Archer for any more boundaries. Archer pulls his length back, firing in a couple of sharp bouncers - one to each batsman - that are well left.
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Daryl Mitchell in action - Andrew Boyers/Action Images via Reuters
11:32am
OVER 90: NZ 381/4 (O’Rourke 10 Mitchell 9)
A maiden from Tongue to Mitchell. Might be time for a double bowling change - Gus Atkinson for his tight line, Ben Stokes for his variety.
11:27am
‘These buses are like Will O’Rourke boundaries’
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Will O’Rourke is playing his 24th Test innings. Those two off Archer were his second and third boundaries.
11:26am
OVER 89: NZ 381/4 (O’Rourke 10 Mitchell 9)
O’Rourke tries to leave Archer and inadvertently steers a boundary through the slips. That takes him to his highest Test score, 6 not out, for which he receives a congratulatory glove punch from Mitchell. And it emboldens him to wave Archer superbly through cover point for four more!
It’s been a frustrating start for England. They’re bowling accurately but the new ball has barely moved off the straight.
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Will O’Rourke moves to his highest Test score - Mike Egerton/PA
11:22am
OVER 88: NZ 372/4 (O’Rourke 2 Mitchell 8)
O’Rourke is almost run out after a mid-pitch stand-off with Mitchell. He was able to get home just before Smith collected Stokes’s throw and broke the stumps.
Later in the over O’Rourke tries to drive Tongue and is beaten. It’s unusual to see him try something so extravagant because he’s generally a very determined defensive batsman. His average is rubbish (2.37) - but he can hang around and a 50-ball 2* would be especially valuable in this situation.
* A Nasser tribute innings
11:13am
England players in T20 Blast action tonight
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A group of England players will head off to play in the Blast tonight: Rehan Ahmed, Jordan Cox and Ollie Robinson.
Matt Fisher is staying here as a sub.
11:13am
OVER 87: NZ 370/4 (O’Rourke 0 Mitchell 8)
Mitchell chases a wide one from Archer and is beaten. Not sure whether that was a deliberate ploy or just an errant delivery.
The rest of the over is uneventful: lots of fourth- and fifth-stump deliveries, Mitchell leaving the majority in the knowledge that there’s unlikely to be any movement back into him. A maiden.
11:10am
OVER 86: NZ 370/4 (O’Rourke 0 Mitchell 8)
England open up with Josh Tongue rather than Gus Atkinson. The move almost reaps an instant dividend when Mitchell inside-edges his first ball past the stumps for four. Close, close, close.
It’s an excellent start from Tongue, with almost every delivery threatening the stumps. Mitchell bat-pads the last delivery in the air for a single; there was nobody at short leg.
11:05am
OVER 85: NZ 363/4 (O’Rourke 0 Mitchell 1)
Jofra Archer has five balls remaining in his 13th over, which began with the wicket of Henry Nicholls last night.
The temperature at Trent Bridge is around 30 degrees, with a high of 36 expected later in the day.
Archer starts pretty well, one no-ball aside, with a tight line to the right-handers. It’s vital to make the batters play as much as possible while the new ball is hard.
11:00am
Time for the action
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To sum up the prospects of day two: an hour of Will O’Rourke could kill off England.
10:46am
Sliding doors
10:43am
In cricket, there’s always a precedent
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Plenty of optimism among fans in No 8 Cafe in West Bridgford. Lots of references to this Test four years ago, when New Zealand batted first, scored 553 – and still lost.
10:30am
A scorcher in Nottingham
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Good morning from Trent Bridge. It’s another scorcher. Nick and I made the mistake of walking in and are a bit sweaty.
Where is this game? New Zealand are in charge of course, but those two late wickets have changed the complexion a touch. If England could get a couple of early ones and limit the Black Caps to 450-odd, they are very much in the game.
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Ben Stokes and Tim Southee, England’s bowling coach, chat ahead of the second day’s play - Mike Egerton/PA
10:01am
Saracens make a dig at ECB as they clear player over Gus Atkinson ‘attack’
By Will Macpherson and Gavin Mairs
The Saracens rugby player accused of “unprovoked attacks” on Gus Atkinson, which caused a crisis in English cricket, has been cleared of wrongdoing by his club.
Totoa Auvaa, a 21-year-old Samoan lock in Saracens’s academy, took a swing at the England bowler Atkinson in the Rex Rooms nightclub in west London, but connected instead with James Shaw, the team’s security guard. The presence of Test captain Ben Stokes in the club and the fact that it was after midnight resulted in English cricket descending into a crisis it still has not completely emerged from.
Following an internal investigation – the third conducted by sporting bodies on the matter – Saracens have cleared Auvaa, who they did not name, whilst appearing to take a veiled dig at the England and Wales Cricket Board over its collaboration on the matter.
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10:00am
Jofra Archer’s reputation does not match reality
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To glimpse Jofra Archer’s qualities as a Test bowler, consider the final delivery of the opening day at Trent Bridge. The ball was just short of a length, homing into Henry Nicholls’s upper body. Unable to leave the ball alone, the batsman poked forward. But Archer’s combination of bounce, and a scintilla of seam movement away, squared up Nicholls, claiming the edge of his bat en route to Jamie Smith.
As England celebrated, a beaming Archer laughed. Yet the opening day had again reminded Archer of the brutal realities of the Test game.
Read more...
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Jofra Archer celebrates the late wicket of Henry Nicholls - Gareth Copley /ECB
09:57am
England suffer day of pain with jobs on the line
Ben Stokes wore a wide grin as he led England off at the end of a sweltering day of hard toil that at one stage threatened to spiral out of control.
You can poke many holes in this England team, but two wickets in the final five minutes of a day spent in the field in 32C heat was proof the spirit is strong despite the travails of the past few weeks.
New Zealand, at 361 for four, still had the better of the day but it could have been so much worse for England and Stokes, who wore a face of pain while waiting for the first wicket to fall at 5.23pm, as Tom Latham and Devon Conway feasted on a flat batting pitch for an opening stand of 317.
Read more...
09:48am
‘Time for Stokes to go... he is past it’
09:46am
Good morning
Hello and welcome to live, over-by-over coverage of the second day of the deciding Test between England and New Zealand. For much of day one England were staring at a stinker for the ages, but a thoroughly admirable fightback (imagine summoning the energy to do anything worthwhile when the opposition are 317/0 in that heat) has given them a sniff.
We’ve said it before, we’ll say it again: this is a big first hour. New Zealand will resume on 361/4, with the second new ball only 4.1 overs old. They have a long tail, too, and if England start well they could roll New Zealand for an under-par score.
It feels a little perverse to type that when they are 361/4, but the Trent Bridge wicket is a belter and both teams will be mindful of New Zealand’s last Test on this ground four years ago. They were 405/4 early on day two yet still lost by five wickets when Jonny Bairstow went berserk on the final day.
Tim Southee, who was in that New Zealand team, is now England’s bowling coach and was full of praise for the hard yakka they put in on a sweltering day.
“It’s Test cricket, it’s hard, and on a surface like that it’s particularly hard. But we got some rewards late in the day,” he said. “We sit here now with a couple (more wickets) and we’re coming tomorrow with the new ball and a bit of energy from the bowlers.
“Test cricket is played over five days and you’ve got to be able to believe you’re in a position where all three results are possible. We sit here after day one with New Zealand four down, two new batters in, a nightwatchman at one end and a new ball in hand. It’s exciting.”
A lot more exciting than it promised to be when New Zealand were 317/0.
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