STATS HIGHLIGHTS
Follow UsIt was a series dominated by England batters, especially during the chase. For New Zealand, Daryl Mitchell and Tom Blundell showed some resistance. After suffering series loss against the Kiwis in their last tour to England in 2021, England chased 270+ in each of the matches to whitewash New Zealand in 2022:
A partnership to remember
Wrapping up the top four was never a problem for England bowlers this series. But, the partnership that came later was the thorn in their flesh. In six innings together, Blundell and Mitchell posted 724 runs, which is by far the most by a New Zealand pair in a Test series.
Martin Crowe and Andrew Jones in 1991 against Sri Lanka at home had posted 552 runs. Their four century partnerships are also the most.
In the six innings they batted together, the duo was involved in four century partnerships. In Tests, Blundell and Mitchell's pair was only the fifth to achieve this feat. To emboss more, they are only the third pair to be involved in four century partnerships in an away series.
In terms of runs, their 724 runs are the fifth most runs scored by a pair in an away series in Tests. In the third Test, the pair also became the fourth New Zealand pair to have a century partnership in each innings of a Test match.
Mitchell makes merry
Coming in as a replacement player for Henry Nicholls in the first Test at Lord's, Mitchell cemented a permanent spot with his consistent performances. In each of the three Tests, he has hit a century. By virtue of it, Mitchell registered 538 runs, the most for a New Zealand batter in a series against England and the fourth most overall for New Zealand.
On the back of his three centuries in this series, Mitchell became the third New Zealander after Jones against Sri Lanka in 1991 and Ross Taylor against West Indies in 2013, to hit three centuries in a series. He is the first on the list to achieve it in an away series.
It doesn’t end there, he also is the ninth player in Tests to hit centuries in all matches of a three-plus match Test series. Among those nine players, he is the only one to achieve it in an away series. The last player to achieve this was Virat Kohli at home against Sri Lanka in 2017.
More to his glory, apart from the first innings of the first Test, Mitchell scored a 50+ score in each of the five-remaining innings. Hence, he became the first New Zealand batter to hit five 50+ scores in consecutive innings in Tests.
Blundell acts as the second fiddle
Alongside Mitchell, Blundell played the role of a second fiddle. Blundell in his six innings scored 383 runs with three half-centuries and one century.
Among New Zealand wicketkeepers, he is the first to score 300+ runs in a Test series. Previously, Warren Lees in 1976 against Pakistan, had scored 292 runs, the most then. To add more, no New Zealand wicketkeeper has hit more than two 50+ scores in a series. Whereas, Blundell has four to his name in this series.
Bairstow in beast mode
In the last two matches, England’s batting has all been about Jonny Bairstow. In the two innings in this Test and the series, Bairstow set a few records:
-Bairstow registered back-to-back hundreds for the first time in his Test career and both centuries came in less than 100 balls. He was the third batter in Tests to register consecutive hundreds in less than 100 balls. Shahid Afridi in 2006 (vs India) and Brendon McCullum in 2014 (vs Pakistan and Sri Lanka) are the other batters. Tamim Iqbal in 2010 (vs England) registered one hundred in less than 100 balls and the other in exactly 100 balls.
-Bairstow in the fourth innings registered a 30-ball half-century, which is the second-fastest by an England batter and the fastest by any on English soil in Tests. To add to that, Bairstow registered the second-fastest 100, and the second-fastest 150 for England in this series.
-Overall, Bairstow scored 394 runs at a strike rate of 120.1. In a series in which a batter has scored 300+ runs, only Afridi against India in 2006 had scored at a higher strike rate of 121.3.
-Bairstow had a strike rate of 161.4 in his knock of an unbeaten 71 in the fourth innings of the third Test. Among England batters who have scored a 50+ in the fourth innings, his strike rate is the best (where ball data is available).
-Throughout this series, Bairstow had a strike rate of 147.8 in the fourth innings, which is the highest for a batter in a series with a minimum of 100 runs in the fourth.
Impressive debut for Overton
England were 55 for 6 and were trailing by 274 when Jamie Overton came into bat in England’s first innings. In the company of Bairstow, Overton smashed a fifty on debut off just 68 balls. Unfortunately, he was dismissed three runs short of a century on debut. Regardless, his score of 97, is the highest for an England batter on debut, batting at eight or lower. Liam Dawson in 2016 against India in Chennai, had scored an unbeaten 66.
A Seventh wicket high
England were tottering at 55 for 6 when the duo of Bairstow and Overton came together. From there on, the pair posted 241 runs for the seventh wicket. In Tests, this is the highest ever seventh-wicket partnership for England, no pair has had 200+.
More to their glory, they are the first-ever pair to post a 200+ run partnership for the seventh or lower wicket after being six down for less than 60, in fact, less than 100.
Top-order crumbles
England’s top four batters were all dismissed for single-digit scores in their first innings of the third Test. In a home Test, this is only the fifth time that their top four have crumbled for single-digit scores. The last time this happened was in 2005 against Australia at Lord’s.
This is also the first time in 53 years (since 1969), that the top three batters of a team were dismissed through bowled in an innings for single-digit scores. Overall, there have been seven instances in Tests. To add more, Boult is only the second bowler after Jack Saunders of Australia in 1902 against England, to be involved in all three dismissals.
England sunk further. They lost their first six wickets for just 71 balls, which is the fewest balls faced by their first six wickets in a home Test since 1999. Overall, only against Sri Lanka (63) in Galle in 2007 and against New Zealand (68) in 2018 in Auckland, they had lost their first six in fewer deliveries.
Leach announces himself
After a blunderous Ashes tour of 2021/22 (in Australia), there was a lot for Jack Leach to prove. In the third Test, he showed a lot of class. By bagging his first five-for on home soil, Leach was the star among the bowlers in the first innings.
He then followed it up by another five-for in the second innings and became the first England spinner this century to pick up five-wicket hauls in both innings of a home Test. The last England bowler to achieve this feat was Derek Underwood against Pakistan in 1974. To emboss more, he is only the second spinner to achieve this feat in England this century after Shane Warne in 2005 at The Oval.
Bairstow and Stokes’ blazing partnership
It was the pair of Bairstow and Stokes that laid the foundation for the destruction against New Zealand in the second Test. The pair forged a 179-run partnership for the fifth wicket at a run rate of 8.9. In the third, their partnership lasted only 34 runs, but they scored at 9.7. Overall, the duo stitched 215 runs at a run rate of 8.4, which is the highest for a pair with 200+ runs and 100+ balls in a Test series (where ball-data available).
England’s love for chases
In all the three matches, England registered a thumping win by chasing 250+ targets. In the history of Test cricket, no team has achieved this feat in three consecutive matches. In addition, for the second time, England have chased in all the three matches of a series to whitewash their opponents. Interestingly, New Zealand have been the opponents on both occasions, once in 2004 and now in 2022.
Throughout this series, England batters had scored at a run rate of 4.77 in the fourth innings. This is the best run rate for a team that has scored 500+ runs in the fourth innings of a series. Overall, England have scored at a run rate of 4.54 in this series. Only Australia against West Indies in 2015/16 had scored at a higher rate in a three-plus match series.
