England’s innings on day two of the first Test against New Zealand started with Ben Duckett and debutant Jacob Bethell at the crease. Duckett struggled for fluency, nearly edging a return catch to Nathan Smith before edging a pull shot for four. Smith bowled well, challenging Duckett’s outside edge with his wobbling seam. Meanwhile, Bethell was happy to leave deliveries outside off.
Duckett found some luck, edging a wayward delivery for four, but nearly dragged on to his stumps with a cross-bat hack. Smith continued to trouble the batters with his nagging line and length. Bethell managed to get off the mark with a single before surviving an lbw shout. Duckett, on the other hand, drove Southee through mid-off for four but struggled against the New Zealand bowlers.
Zak Crawley struggled at the crease before being dismissed lbw by Matt Henry for a duck. Duckett, looking more comfortable, found boundaries off Southee and Henry. Bethell, still on zero, faced some testing deliveries from the New Zealand pacers.
Overall, it was a challenging morning session for England as they looked to chase New Zealand’s first innings total of 348. The bowlers, especially Smith and Henry, posed threats to the English batters, and early wickets fell before lunch was called. Zealand were 325-8 at the end of the session, with Glenn Phillips and Tim Southee at the crease.
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