Table of Contents
- England beat New Zealand by eight wickets in the first Test in Christchurch
- Lawrence Booth gives you his player ratings, including a 1/0 for one star.
England made a solid start to their series against New Zealand as they took the first Test by eight wickets in Christchurch.
Standout performances came from Brydon Carse and Ollie Pope, and England are in a good position for the second Test.
There were some concerns after captain Ben Stokes injured his back and abandoned his bowling spell, but the captain believes he will be “fine” to compete in Wellington.
“It’s very satisfying to be able to win as a team. We were given different challenges throughout the game, but as a group we stuck to certain plans and got our rewards,” Carse said.
Meanwhile, New Zealand’s Tom Latham said: “When you play in a quality moment like England, who put pressure on you, sometimes those mistakes can hurt you.” We are all working very hard to continue producing runs and wickets and that will not change.
Mail Sport’s Lawrence Booth was in attendance and brings us his player ratings during the action.
It was celebration time for England as they beat New Zealand by eight wickets in the first Test.
Brydon Carse was a star for the victors, but what rating did Lawrence Booth give him?
England
Zak Crawley 1/10
I can’t go to New Zealand. A match total of one in every 20 balls leaves him with an average against the Kiwis of 9.88.
Ben Duckett 6.5
He made 73 off 80 balls and gave the chase a shot in the arm. But he took advantage of his luck and New Zealand capitalized on their opportunities with the short ball.
Jacob Bethel 7.5
The debutant was not flattered by his first 10 innings in testing conditions but broke loose in exciting fashion for a 37-ball half-century to brush aside the chase with ease.
Zak Crawley scores just 1/10 after a very disappointing match with a total of one in 20 balls.
Joe Root gets a 5.5 for his performance: he made an atypical failure in the first innings
Joe Root 5.5
He made an atypical flop in the first inning, but wasted no time on the fourth afternoon. He was on the wicket when England secured victory in their 150th Test.
Harry Brook 7.5
How do you score a 171 entry that includes five falls? Brook admitted he was lucky, but good enough to take advantage of New Zealand’s generosity.
Ollie Papa 8
He performed well on both sides of the stumps. His 77 played a crucial role in England’s first innings recovery and he was alert with the gloves.
Ben Stokes 7
He batted within himself to make a well-judged 80, but sent 19.3 overs wicketless before feeling a twinge in his back. Captained with more enthusiasm than in Pakistan.
Chris wakes up 6
Insipid in the first innings, he gave England control in the second by removing Williamson and Blundell in two balls. But how much more will he play?
Ollie Pope was a key factor on both sides of the stumps and scored 77 to help in the first innings.
Ben Stokes vows to return for second Test after back pain here
Gus Atkinson 6.5
He took big wickets from Conway and Williamson and his 36-ball 48 on the second day demoralized New Zealand. But he exceeded 13 times and was surpassed by Carse.
Brydon Carse 9.5
What a find. Jimmy Anderson and Stuart Broad never managed a 10 away from home, but Carse did it at the third time of asking. I also smashed three sixes.
Shoaib Bashir 6.5
Slightly flattered by his four for in the first innings and failed to get into the game in the second, when he cost more than five per over.
New Zealand
Tom Latham 6, Devon Conway 2, Kane Williamson 8, Rachin Ravindra 6, Daryl Mitchell 7, Tom Blundell 4, Glenn Phillips 6, Nathan Smith 6.5, Matt Henry 7, Tim Southee 5.5, Will O’Rourke 4, 5.