England’s batting woes continue in the 2nd ODI as well against New Zealand. The mighty Britishers got folded for 175 runs in 36 overs. It raises serious questions over England’s batting approach, which is not getting aligned with the standards of ODI cricket. Blair Tickner was the wrecker-in-chief who took 4 wickets for 34 in his 8-over spell.
England has a topsy-turvy power play
New Zealand was quite happy to bowl first after winning the toss. England had a chance to rectify their mistake after getting all out to a below-par score in 1st ODI match. The struggles, though, continued for England’s openers, who yet again failed to trouble the scorers. Even in the absence of Matt Henry, the bowling unit looked powerful, which speaks to New Zealand’s depth in fast bowling ranks.
New Zealand’s score at the end of 10 overs was 49-2 as slowly & steadily, Joe Root was getting into the zone along with Jacob Bethell. The surface at Hamilton didn’t have that many demons in it, but England’s batting approach backfired massively. It would sound very harsh but England’s batting is very centric to Joe Root.
Blair Tickner rips apart England’s batting unit
Blair Tickner got the prized wicket of Joe Root in the 12th wicket, which opened the gates for Black Caps. From 51-2, there was a drastic collapse of England to 81-5 in 19 overs. New Zealand’s bowlers hunted in a pack as they made a statement that hard work & discipline can beat a world-class batting line-up.
We should not forget that England’s team is not at all in transition, who have a good blend of youth and experience. Harry Brook continued his purple patch, as from the other end, he was making sure that the scoreboard was ticking away. Just at the halfway mark, Harry Brook was undone by Mitchell Santner as the England team was in tatters at 105-6 in 23.2 overs, with Harry Brook out on 34 runs in 34 balls.
Jamie Overton’s blitz ends England’s innings
It was quite astonishing to see that once again England’s middle order faltered. Jamie Overton, batting at the no.8 position, played a kind of whirlwind knock of 42 runs in 28 balls. Sam Curran had a great chance to stamp his authority as a batter, but a 17-run knock in 27 balls didn’t help England that much. England got bowled out in 36 overs, which is unacceptable & no less than a crime in modern ODI cricket.
New Zealand’s bowlers were spitting fire with fire. Blair Tickner had a productive spell as his return to International cricket gave nightmares to England. New Zealand’s Blair Tickner took 4 wickets and gave away 34 runs in his 8-over spell. The rest of the bowling unit made sure that England’s batters never were in ascendancy, as not a single partnership of England’s batters was of 40 runs.
Who’s winning, England or New Zealand
England has a herculean task of winning the match. It’s lucid that England will have to bowl out New Zealand to square the series and need wickets in quick succession as one partnership of 50-70 odd runs will be adequate to win match. New Zealand, on the other hand, has the game in its pocket, we can say. The likes of Kane Williamson & Rachin Ravindra would be keen to get some runs under their belt. New Zealand looks all set to seal the series with yet another dominant win unless something dramatic happens.
Also Read: NZ vs ENG: Harry Brook’s Outstanding Ton Takes England To A Competitive Total