New Zealand vs England: Will O’Rourke & Mitchell Santner star in Hamilton
After leaving New Zealand at 315-9 overnight and returning with the second new ball in 11 overs, England could bat almost immediately on Sunday morning.
Instead, they gave Santner too much respect and allowed him to strike. The left-hander added 26 more in 50 pitches on day one. O’Rourke finished his game by striking out just 5 of 30 pitches.
If the batting of Santner and O’Rourke frustrated England, O’Rourke’s bowling was particularly heartbreaking for the visitors. He shot eight-plus shots and averaged over 88 mph on hot days, but more importantly used his length to generate toxic lift.
Santner, the hero of New Zealand’s series win in India, is playing the first Test of the series. When he came on to bowl, he produced an immediate spin, which made it all the more curious that England ignored the off-spinner Shoaib Bashir until the 157th over of the match.
New Zealand’s batting of the evening was only to extend their lead. Young, India’s man of the series, has once again proven how much he has failed in the first two Tests of this series, while Williamson has helped himself by building on his average of 94 before the start of this match.
O’Rourke’s day came to an end when he came into contact with the bat for the second time, becoming the wicketkeeper after Young hooked Stokes’ bouncer to Bethell. It was a lost cause that ended in defeating the same bowler.
