Daryl Mitchell and Tom Blundell once more established to be a sore in England’s side as they assisted New Zealand in overcoming a rare accident to finish the first day of the third and final Test on 225 for five on Thursday at Hedingley.
After deciding to bat, New Zealand struggled. Stuart Broad dismissed opener Tom Latham for a duck in the opening over.
Prior to tea, New Zealand was teetering on 123-5 when Henry Nicholls mysteriously collapsed, but Mitchell and Blundell spearheaded the comeback with an uninterrupted century stand.
The ball struck Mitchell’s bat at the non-end striker’s and ricocheted into the clutches of Alex Lees at mid-off as Nicholls, who struggled for 19 from 99 balls, hit a drive off the bowling of left-arm spinner Jack Leach
With his first ball of the day, Leach trapped opener Will Young’s leg before wicket for 20 and went on to claim his second wicket.
Kane Williamson, the captain of New Zealand, chose to bat first on a flattish surface after missing the second Test due to Covid-19, but England quickly took the lead.
