And welcome to the second day of the second test from Trent Bridge. It seems pretty obvious that both sides misinterpreted the terrain yesterday and New Zealand came away with the very effective chance of losing the draw. They also exploited their fortunes with courage and skill, each of the first six making 25 or more, baptizing diligently but attractively in a field that offered encouragement largely through bouncing rather than movement. Ben Stokes and Jimmy Anderson played well, Stuart Broad had bad luck with two of his four bowling catches, but only Anderson can be satisfied with his numbers.
Bazball dictates that England continue to attack and, given what some of us have moaned about the long shots the punches have made in their first spells over the last decade, it would be unfair to criticize them for throwing it and for establishing the fields accordingly. If Root had clung to Daryl Mitchell’s snick or if Zak Crawley and Jonny Bairstow hadn’t played ‘After You, Claud’ when Tom Blundell took a bite last night, the scoreboard would have made a more favorable read in the locker room. England this morning.
The story is not about the local team. Only three teams have made 318 or more first baptisms at Trent Bridge and have lost the game: South Africa in 1998, New Zealand in 2004 and the West Indies in 2012. On each occasion, the opposition took an advantage in the first entry, England knocked them out. cheaper in the second inning and eliminated chasing races. This would seem like his best chance of winning this test and taking the series, but today there is a long way to go before the field, unless Messrs. Broad, Anderson, and Potts can find their Lord’s third morning mojo to start a col ยท Lapse. Join us as we find out.