England vs New Zealand 3rd Test Preview & Tips - New Zealand to miss out on impressive Test series win over England
- The Test series is level at 1-1 with one game to play
- Joe Root scored 46 and 77 in the second Test for England
- Preview, stats & head to head
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Joe Root of England (Getty Images)
England vs New Zealand 3rd Test Preview & Tips
England are in need of a much-improved performance with bat and ball in the third Test after they were given a lesson in ruthlessness by New Zealand.
New Zealand took full advantage of England's creaking batting unit and their inexperienced bowling attack as they handed their opponents a brutal 253-run loss.
- Joe Root scored 46 and 77 for England in the second Test
- Matt Henry took 11 wickets in the second Test for New Zealand
- England have won three of their last five Tests against New Zealand (L2)
Head To Head
England have secured wins in seven of their last 10 Tests against the Black Caps with the latter winning the other three.
England Form
England were completely outplayed in the second Test as they saw most of their batters removed cheaply. The first innings saw Ben Duckett (36), Emilio Gay (53), Joe Root (46) and Matt Fisher (50) go well, but none could go big with the bat.
This was similar in the second innings as Root (77) and Brook (58) provided the only real resistance. By contrast, Glenn Phillips' century in the first innings preceded a score of 121 for Henry Nicholls in the second innings. He was also ably assisted by Rachin Ravindra (76) and Daryl Mitchell (68). While each batter impressed, they were able to profit from facing a bowling attack that disappointed.
Ben Stokes and Gus Atkinson's return to the selection process is a big boost, with Atkinson likely to partner up with Jofra Archer and Josh Tongue as the main bowling options along with captain Stokes and a potential appearance for spinner Shoaib Bashir. The English bowling attack was not balanced or experienced enough in the second Test, with a lack of intense probing of the right lines and length allowing New Zealand to build scores.
England will hope that they can focus completely on their cricket in the third Test, with more off-field distractions likely to be unwelcome. Joe Root may have struggled with captaining the side in the second Test, but he starred with the bat, and I back him to continue his excellent run of form with more runs.
New Zealand Form
New Zealand know that they are in with a big chance of handing England a stunning Test series defeat on their own patch following their very impressive display in the second Test.
Batting first, Phillips' brilliant 100 helped New Zealand to post a total of 391. They then went about taking England's wickets regularly, with Matt Henry taking 5/80. Nicholls (121), Ravindra (76) and Mitchell (68) blunted England's bowling attack before Matt Henry (6/29) returned to outdo himself in a stunning display of bowling to the conditions.
Matt Henry proved to be the bane of England across the second Test, taking 11 of the 20 wickets on offer. He is my pick to impress with the ball in the third Test as he continues to take wickets.
New Zealand knew that they had a huge chance to beat England in the second Test with two of their key players missing. Their return to the team will see the balance of power swing back towards England, and I predict the travelling side will slump to a defeat.
Verdict
I am backing Joe Root to lead the charge for England with the bat as the home side win the series 2-1 despite Henry's continued heroics with the ball.
England
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