England’s Test entourage after a dramatic 1-run defeat to the hands of Kane Williamson’s New Zealand have headed back home to prepare for the big summer Test against old rivals Australia. It will be for the first time that under Brendan McCullum’s coaching and Ben Stokes’ captaincy that England will take on ICC World Test championship final.
The last time these 2 teams met for the Ashes, Australia were able to retain the series but 2023 summer promises to provide more action. The Three Lions will be hoping to win the Ashes this year and their recently concluded 2-match test series against New Zealand.
Talking about the Three Lions’ recent series at New Zealand, Ben Stokes and co. won the first test comprehensively by 267 runs. They had the best possible start to the series and looked favorites to clinch the series. However, the Kiwis fought back strongly.
NEIL WAGNER WINS IT FOR NEW ZEALAND! #NZvENG pic.twitter.com/yv1ZI8r3f7
— ESPNcricinfo (@ESPNcricinfo) February 28, 2023
In the 1st innings, England ended up with 435 runs on the board. Joe Root and Harry Brook’s electrifying knocks saw Kiwi bowlers bite the dust. In reply, New Zealand were bowled out for 209 runs with England enforcing a follow on, which is perhaps one of the reasons why England lost.
The Kiwis amassed 483 runs in their 2nd innings, which meant the Europeans will chase a target of 258. The target looked pleasing on the eye but the ending was not pleasurable at all for England. New Zealand grabbed a famous victory by just 1 run to level the series.
One of the major concerns for England was their Captain’s knee injury problems. The premium All-rounder looked in pain during the 2nd Test and questions around his availability and fitness is all over the place. Amid his fitness struggles, the all-rounder has well over 2 months to recover ahead of the Ashes.
However, with the IPL on the horizon, Stokes will not have time to rest as CSK bought him for a high price with even higher hopes of replacing Dwayne Bravo.
“I’ve been working hard with the physios and the medics out here to try to get myself into a place where I can fill that role like how I have done the last 10 years or however long it is.”
