England hopes to win series against New Zealand thanks to Stokes & McCullum

England hopes to win series against New Zealand thanks to Stokes & McCullum

England hopes to win series against New Zealand thanks to Stokes & McCullum

New Zealand’s Kane Williamson (C) congratulates England’s Joe Root (L) and England’s Ben Foakes (R) after England won the first cricket Test match between England and New Zealand at Lord’s cricket ground in London on June 5, 2022. © Adrian DENNIS / AFP

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  • England is 1-0 up in the three-match series against New Zealand.
  • Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum will look to continue where they left off at Lord’s.
  • James Jamieson took six wickets as New Zealand collapsed at Lord’s.
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When England takes on the Black Caps in the second Test in Nottingham on Friday, they will look to continue where they left off under their new leadership tandem of captain Ben Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum, the former New Zealand captain.

After a five-wicket victory against New Zealand at Lord’s last week, England is 1-0 up in the three-match series. It was England’s second win in 18 meetings at this level.

Stuart Broad now wants to energise the crowd at Trent Bridge, his home ground, exactly as he did at Lord’s when New Zealand lost three wickets in three balls on the third day, sparking a collapse of six for 34.

New Zealand, the World Test champions, were well-placed after Daryl Mitchell (108) and Tom Blundell (96) shared a 195-run partnership.

Read More: England’s Broad says he is friendly with Root

Broad, who returned alongside James Anderson after England’s all-time greatest Test wicket-takers were controversially pulled out of a series loss in the Caribbean, waved his arms at spectators as he got his team back into the game.

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Broad had Mitchell caught behind and Kyle Jamieson bowled on either side of Ollie Pope’s run out of Colin de Grandhomme.

England won by five wickets, with Joe Root scoring 115 not out in his first Test after stepping down as captain.

Broad is now hoping to take advantage of the celebratory environment created by Nottingham Forest’s elevation to the Premier League.

“I ran in and felt the ground was a bit quiet, so let’s get this ground going,” said Broad.

“I know that’s when I’m at my best….I need to take that into Trent Bridge, because if I get that Nottingham roar, with the party mode the Forest fans are in, it could have a huge benefit.”

Read More: Ben McDermott wishes for a longer summer in England

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The 35-year-old Nottinghamshire seamer, on the other hand, is fully aware of the dangers of such a strategy: “If you whip the crowd up, then bowl a half-volley and go for four you look daft. But I quite like that pressure.”

Durham is a quick city. Matthew Potts’ debut at Lord’s yielded seven wickets, but England must still make judgments about their bowling and batting lineups in Nottingham.

Stokes, who has been dealing with a knee ailment, bowled just 9.4 overs at Lord’s, while spinner Jack Leach was concussed while fielding early in the innings and had to be replaced by Matt Parkinson.

If England is concerned about Stokes’ ability to play a full role with the ball, Craig Overton might be called up.

Given the circumstances, New Zealand was perhaps inches away from victory at Lord’s. Stokes was on one when he was bowled by a de Grandhomme no-ball, but he recovered to make a crucial 54 in England’s second innings, after they had collapsed to 69 for four.

Even while uncapped Harry Brook, who averaged a massive 140 for Yorkshire in this season’s County Championship, is in the team, England’s specialist batters could yet be retained in the XI.

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Read More: Colin de Grandhomme will not play in the next England Test series

New Zealand didn’t do much wrong in the ‘Home of Cricket,’ though captain and star batsman Kane Williamson would want a big score at Trent Bridge.

“We were probably a moment or two away from winning the last game, so we’ll stay focused on what we do well and if we do that I think we’ll be alright for this one,” said towering paceman Jamieson, who took six wickets at Lord’s.

With a heel injury, De Grandhomme has been ruled out of the rest of the series, meaning fit-again batsman Henry Nicholls is in position for a recall.

Trent Boult and Tim Southee, the new-ball combination, should be better for their first-Test stints, but New Zealand might freshen up their assault by bringing in either Neil Wagner or Matt Henry, with Ajaz Patel’s position in the side doubtful after just bowling two overs at Lord’s.

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