New Zealand beat England by a massive 199 runs in Leeds just a week after losing by a convincing 124 runs at the home of cricket, Lord’s. This win breaks a 16-year long draught in terms of wins on England’s home grounds as New Zealand continues to be synonymous with breaking records in their renewed form of cricket.
Their latest test win at Headingley that allowed them to level their two-test series against England was no different and highlights the unorthodox approach to cricket that is clearly working for them.
Despite the dismal weather breaking up play on more than one occasion, the rain was denied the final word and with just 19 overs to spare, England finally crumbled.
The first two innings of the match seemingly cancelled each other out with both New Zealand and England scoring exactly 350 each. Debutant Luke Ronchi managed an incredible 88, finishing as the top-scorer for the Kiwis.
An impressive century from Adam Lyth and a combined opening standing with captain Alastair Cook set up a perfect platform for the English to set up a massive first innings total. Unfortunately, they were unable to capitalise and a middle-order wobble allowed the Blackcaps to pull the game back onto equal terms.
New Zealand approached their second innings almost identically as their first although it still seems ridiculous to believe they managed 5 runs an over during their innings.
England were quickly forced into a mindset of where to turn to next with each bowler being punished, regardless of who was on strike. Eventually, Brendon McCullum bought the onslaught to an end with a mammoth 454/8d on the board.
England went into lunch on Day 4 at 32/0 and managed a further 12 runs before rain had the final say. The equation left to New Zealand on Day 5 was simple: 90 overs available to get 10 wickets with plenty of runs to play with.
Surprisingly enough, it was fifth option and part-time spin bowler Kane Williamson who made the necessary breakthroughs each time he was brought into the attack, adding Cook, Ben Stokes and Stuart Broad to his list of scalps. He eventually finished with bowling figures of 3-15.
BJ Watling snatched up the man of the match award for his incredible and record breaking innings (120 off just 163 balls), becoming the first New Zealander to hit a century at Headingley, while Trent Boult picked up the man of the series award.
The style that New Zealand employ when playing the longer format greatly differs from practically every other team. Captain Brendon McCullum is known for his aggressive mentality to captaining his team, something he has been criticised about before.
However, this attacking style with both bat and ball is adding another level of excitement to Test cricket as it continues to compete with T20 cricket in terms of entertainment.
This latest draw means New Zealand have managed to remain unbeaten in seven successive Test series, challenging many of the top sides on their home turf. The draw does mean they have dropped one place in the ICC Test rankings, to fourth. However, a loss would have seen them plummet to seventh, showing just how closely the teams are ranked.
News out of New Zealand on the back of this Test series is New Zealand Cricket is set to announce a dramatic increase in the amount of Test cricket the Black Caps will be playing over the next eight years; a deserved increase considering the form they currently find themselves in.
