With the series on the line in the second Test, England and New Zealand will go head to head at Edgbaston after settling for a draw in the opening Test at Lord’s.
Here are the details:
2nd Test between England and New Zealand,
Edgbaston Cricket Ground, Birmingham
10-14 June, 11:00 local; 10:00 GMT
At Lord’s, the hosts had a hard fight on the final day before gaining a draw thanks to a well-disciplined batting display. The first innings of the match were highlighted by Dom Sibley’s composed knock of 60*. Rory Burns scored 132 in their first innings. While the match was being played, England will be without pacer Ollie Robinson, who took seven wickets. If Overton is selected to replace him for the second Test, he could take the field this weekend.
Welcome back @DomBess99! ?
Bessy has been added to our squad ahead of the second match of the LV=Insurance Test series against New Zealand.#ENGvNZ pic.twitter.com/8qtIG20tF6
— England Cricket (@englandcricket) June 7, 2021
Kane Williamson, who had suffered an “irritated left elbow”, will miss the match for New Zealand, as he is suffering from an injury. He did not play at Southampton because of the ICC World Test Championship Final that follows. Gary Stead said his decision to rest him had been made very much with the match on tour in mind.
New Zealand’s chances of winning the world cup remain to be seen. Despite the fact that they struggled to win the first Test, they should be pleased with what they accomplished. The debut of Devon Conway’s Test career began with the double century he produced in his first innings. Southee took seven wickets during the match, including six in the first innings, demonstrating his abilities as a pacer.
Trent Boult, who has been exempt from quarantine in the UK, has been cleared to play at Edgbaston, which could have a positive impact on the Kiwis.
The sun is out in Birmingham! First training for the squad at @Edgbaston. #ENGvNZ pic.twitter.com/wJ7JmcceYI
— BLACKCAPS (@BLACKCAPS) June 8, 2021
The last time they played:
The Kiwis scored 378 runs on the board after opting to bat first, thanks in large part to Conway’s double ton. Southee led the charge with the ball as they skittled out England for 275 in the first innings.
A target of 273 was set by the visitors for England to chase after on the final day. It was decided to declare the match as a draw after Joe Root’s side scored 170/3 in reply. Due to persistent rain, part of the final day of play was washed out. The overs were lost, which certainly had an impact on the result.
The following were their remarks. Joe Root (England captain): “We are not working on developing a strategy at the moment, but rather establishing a platform and, hopefully, weighing things up over time to see what we can do next. Unfortunately, we weren’t able to accomplish that goal, and so the series is level heading into Edgbaston. It was a tricky wicket with some up and down bounce, and we did not have enough time to chase the target. “Because of the conditions, we were able to get a lot of runs. We remained resilient, and we didn’t give them a chance to get us out, which is a good thing going into the next Test.”
Williamson (New Zealand captain) said, “We had a bit of work to do in the morning, and the guys responded with the runs we needed, but the weather forced our hand a bit. There was a lot of excitement in what was an excellent sporting contest.”
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