NZ vs ENG 2024/25, New Zealand vs England 3rd Test, Day 2, Hamilton Match Report, Dec 14-18, 2024

Tea England 143 (Henry 4-48, Santner 3-7, O’Rourke 3-33) trail New Zealand 347 (Santner 76, Latham 63, Potts 4-90, Atkinson 3-66) by 204 runs

The best was yet to come for New Zealand, when O’Rourke removed Harry Brook, the leading run-scorer for both sides, on the first ball. Brook was perhaps a little unlucky when he grounded, only for the ball to bounce off his leg, but the result was the first golden duck of his career, and the first time he was dismissed by a bowler. from New Zealand for less than fifty.

In O’Rourke’s next over, the combination of bounce and backward movement worked for Joe Root as his late cut flew straight at Will Young at backward point. The third spearhead of the New Zealand attack, who claimed 9 for 93 on debut at Seddon Park earlier in the year, had removed the ICC’s No. 1 and 2 batsmen in no time, leaving England 82 for 5.

A lively rally of 52 in 13 overs between Ollie Pope and Ben Stokes followed, only for Santner to remove both in his first two overs. Pope had counter-punched effectively for the third test in a row, only to limp forward to Santner’s sixth delivery and deflect a lead to slip. Stokes then fell lbw when he missed a slow sweep.

The procession continued, as Henry returned to the attack and induced a soft lob at mid-on from Gus Atkinson. Brydon Carse squeezed a catch back to Santner and by the time Matt Potts was caught throwing the bat at Henry, England had lost their last five wickets in five overs to add nine runs.

Henry’s first moment had ensured New Zealand enjoyed the best of the second morning. Henry continued to rein in Zak Crawley, dismissing him for the fifth time in as many innings, before trapping Ben Duckett in the same over as England stuttered in response for 347.

Santner and O’Rourke, New Zealand’s final pair, had frustrated England during the first hour of the session, adding 32 runs to the scoreboard before Potts ended a cat-and-mouse contest with the first ball after drinks .

In friendly batting conditions, England seemed to be stuck from the start. Crawley managed to score his first runs of the series off Henry, bowling the first ball of the innings through fine leg and then coming down and outside the boundary for four. He had more authority against the retiring Tim Southee, smashing him for four fours in his opening from the temporarily renamed Southee End of Seddon Park.

But from the third ball Henry bowled to him, Crawley could only manage a leading edge which was picked up with one hand on the bowler’s follow-up. Crawley waited until the third umpire verified it, but Rod Tucker upheld the dismissal, raising his record to five runs and five outs off 22 balls he faced Henry in the series.

Four balls later, Henry also returned Duckett, with the ball hitting his back leg in front of middle stump. That left England 33 for 2 in five overs, before Root quickly settled with three early boundaries to help climb to 50 in a spirited mini-session that was the antithesis of what had gone before.

During the first half of the morning, with England opening the field for Santner and concentrating only on getting O’Rourke out, the last-wicket pair advanced smoothly. Santner found the boundary three times but otherwise largely faced singles, often on the fourth ball of the over, while O’Rourke blocked firmly at the other end.

The number 11 initially played as an Atkinson maiden and continued to show good defensive technique. His first run came via an inside edge to fine leg, and the same shot later brought him his first boundary in 19 international innings.

O’Rourke was caught behind in the seventh over of the day, only for Ahsan Raza to have to reverse his decision when technology showed the ball had hit his trouser leg.

It looked like the holding pattern could continue indefinitely, with Santner inching towards his second-highest Test score, after the hundred he scored against England in 2019. But immediately after the break, Potts found some movement inside the right line to defeat. Santner’s drive and pin went back, ending the stand on 44 and giving Potts his fourth wicket of the innings.