A serene century from Joe Root and a spectacular 184 not out from Harry Brook took England to 315-3 on a rain-affected day
1st over: England 0-0 (Crawley 0, Duckett 0) First ball, Southee beats Zak Crawley on the inside edge and appeals for LBW. Going down, it seems. Second ball, he finds the outside edge, but Crawley’s hands are soft enough to keep it down. Third ball, cartoon outswinger, left alone, ends up between first and second slip. Fourth ball, swinging away again, in the channel but safely left. Fifth ball, thick outside edge, again controlled. Sixth ball, left again. It’s a maiden! Something NZ didn’t manage for 40 overs in the first Test.
Some correspondence!“OK Tim...” says Brendan Large on Twitter. “I heard the pitch was green but WTAF. It looks like the groundsperson had a few too many last night & painted the pitch on the outfield. Will it play as stupidly as it looks? If it does is that good or bad for NZ? Surely Bazball is made for a crazy wicket?”
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