England against New Zealand cricket second test.

England against New Zealand- cricket second test

As village greens and recreation parks across Britain find their first tentative feet in the waters of the cricket season, thoughts turn to umpires with pullovers wrapped around their waist, hardy pavilions with both England and New Zealand padded up for action and the crowds in humorous mood. Everything looked set fair for the second test between England and New Zealand, a contest that used to be a warm up act for the Ashes between England and Australia.

Summer fell beautifully onto the green acres of Trent Bridge, a ground where once Harold Larwood cut his menacing teeth with his club side Nottinghamshire.  Larwood was once the man who terrorised and tormented Australia in the Bodyline scandal of many moons ago. In 1932 Larwood was the man who once created an international incident because his bowling was so lethal and terrifying that even the citizens of Sydney and Melbourne were probably quaking in their boots. Larwood was a demon fast bowler against the Aussies even if the foundations still shake whenever and wherever cricket is played. 

But yesterday England were labouring in the outfield hoping against hope that a Larwood of the modern age would step up to the breach and give New Zealand a bowling masterclass they'd never forget. For a number of years now Jimmy Anderson has instilled fear and trepidation into every batsman he's faced. Anderson can be frightening and intimidating, swinging the ball fiercely, digging the ball right up to a batsman's face with an almost sinister regularity and gobbling up wickets as if they were going out of  fashion.

At the other end Stuart Broad, all headband and boundless energy would perform much the service, pounding the ball down fiercely into the ground before allowing it to drift and then cut back to the batsman in a matter of seconds. Yesterday Broad and Anderson must have felt like gate crashers at a summer garden party or barbecue. They toiled industriously as we always knew they would but  nothing seemed to come their way. 

For most of the day Daryl Mitchell and Tom Blundell stood their ground obstinately, patiently crafting their colossal scores rather like men building a comfortable wooden chair. Every so often the drill could be heard and then a raucous hammering. Mitchell was ruthless, heartless, cool, calculating, bold and then savagery personified. He danced down the pitch to anything loose that fell short and clobbered the ball deep into the Nottingham sky where the destination must have been a local shopping centre. His century just materialised quite naturally, the strokes impeccable cover and straight drives, lofted sixes and fours and clipped ones and twos that were so fluent that you might have taken them for granted. 

Then perhaps the game's dominant figure of the moment, Mitchell was ten short of a double century when his wicket fell. His partner Tom Blundell was the perfect partner and accomplice on this giddiest of cricketing days. Blundell was more cautious, circumspect, analytical and scientific before flinging the bat carelessly when the occasion warranted it and then chipping away at the England bowling attack with perfectly executed ground strokes, cutting, clipping and hooking with supreme confidence.

When the visitors had reached 553 all out, it seemed the New Zealanders had posted an insurmountable target. You remembered one Sir Richard Hadleigh, surely one of New Zealand's greatest of players, a bowler of some repute and stature, unplayable at times. But even Hadleigh would have been swooning at the sight of this current generation. New Zealand had gone for the big total and after losing the first Test at Lords would have been desperate for a way back into this series. 

Then in the early evening light England were set a mighty total to chase. They set about their thankless task purposefully and thoughtfully. Alex Lees and Zak Crawley bounded down the Trent Bridge steps, very much the new kids on the block. Amusingly you recalled another Nottinghamshire favourite son loping down onto the field in an England shirt. Derek Randall was a reliable, trustworthy fielder leaping around with those long legs like a man stretching his calf muscles. But Randall would have been hugely impressed with the efforts of the England 2022 class. 

At close of play, England were nicely placed to emulate the batting feats of the New Zealand attack. Lees and Crawley clubbed the ball ferociously through the covers to every corner of the ground. England finished the day at 90-1 and are now well into the 300s. This could be a match made in heaven with both sides fencing with each other, testing each other's reflexes and hoping that the summer game of cricket can once again produce the kind of quality cricket that we might have come to expect of it.