England vs New Zealand 2nd Test Full Commentary

Welcome back for England's reply. The two umpires and players have made their way out to the middle. It will be Ben Duckett and Emilio Gay to open the innings for England. Matt Henry is ready at the top of his mark. Duckett to face the first ball. Here we go...

... SECOND INNINGS ...

A mixed bag for England - Just as they allowed the second new ball to go to waste with some questionable lengths on the second morning, it was a similar story when they began on Day 1. England had an opportunity to make New Zealand pay for not converting their starts, but could not do so and got a bit carried away with the short-ball plan this morning. The conditions still look good for batting, and for England, it will be about seeing off the new-ball phase before looking to cash in. First things first, though, it is about negotiating the mini phase before Lunch without any casualties. Stay tuned!

New Zealand finish on 391 - Glenn Phillips walks off to a standing ovation after a superb innings. The England openers have already sprinted off the park. According to Mark Butcher, they will have around 10 minutes to negotiate before the Lunch interval. Having been asked to bat first, 6 of New Zealand's top 7 batters got starts, but only Tom Blundell and Glenn Phillips managed to cross 50. At 107/4, the innings could have unravelled quickly, but Daryl Mitchell, Blundell and Phillips led a strong recovery, with Phillips standing out through his maiden Test ton.

Will O'Rourke is the last man in. A silly point in place for the new batter.

Jofra Archer (19-4-58-1) comes into the attack.

Welcome back for the start of the post-Lunch session. Joe Root leads his men out onto the park. It will be the left-handed duo of Tom Latham and Devon Conway to open the innings for New Zealand. Jofra Archer will steam in first up. Archer to Latham. Two slips, a gully and a leg slip. Here we go...

... THIRD INNINGS ...

Can England make the ball talk? New Zealand were unable to make their starts count in the first innings and will be keen to rectify that this time around. Even with the old ball, the seamers found enough movement to stay interested, which should make for an intriguing couple of sessions today as England look to hit back with the ball. We will be back in a bit for the second session.

A stubborn stand - New Zealand struck early to reduce England to 238/9, who started the day 169 runs adrift. Given how quickly they picked up those wickets, it looked like it would be a straightforward morning's work for the Kiwi pacers. However, England's last-wicket pair had other ideas. That said, the tourists fell into a similar trap to England the previous morning, turning to the short-ball plan with the field spread out rather than sticking to the basics and attacking the stumps.

New Zealand finally get the job done - The last-wicket stand lasted 102 balls, the second-longest partnership of the innings, and added 53 valuable runs. A lead of 100 is still a healthy one for New Zealand, but Matthew Fisher and Sonny Baker did a commendable job at chipping away at the deficit. Matt Henry walks off with the ball held aloft after a richly deserved five-wicket haul. The seamer was outstanding throughout the innings, and New Zealand dearly missed his services at Lord's.

With about 7 minutes left until Lunch, New Zealand will come out to bat only after the break if England are bowled out now. If this last-wicket stand continues, though, we could see Lunch being pushed back.

We have about 13 minutes left for Lunch break.

Kyle Jamieson (18-4-78-0) has been brought back.

Welcome back for England's chase. The Blackcaps spread out to the field. Ben Duckett and Emilio Gay are the two openers for England. Matt Henry has the new ball and is raring to go. Here we go again...

... THE RUN CHASE ...

A big task ahead - England were sharper today, no question about that. Archer was the standout with the ball throughout the innings, with Fisher chipping in with three wickets to help clear the tail. Archer and Tongue kept creating chances and did manage to reduce New Zealand to 261 for 4 with Phillips and Nicholls both back in the hut. But the moment the two were taken off, runs came far more easily, the second line of attack unable to ask the same questions. It took the second new ball, taken right after lunch, to bring the house down. Fisher and Baker ran through the tail and England finally had a number to chase. It happens to be 463. And to hunt it down, England will need to pull off a record fourth-innings chase in Tests to win this match. But one thing is for sure, they won't go down without a fight with almost a day and a half left in this Test. Back in a bit with the chase. Stay tuned.

The middle order stepped up mighty - The tourists lost a couple of wickets early in their second innings after building a first-innings lead of 100, but the middle order did not flinch. Ravindra and Nicholls put the innings back on its feet with a commanding third-wicket stand, Ravindra contributing 76 before falling and Nicholls going all the way to his 11th Test hundred. Mitchell then came in and kept the momentum going alongside Nicholls, as the pair kept pushing the lead into territory that now looks very difficult to overhaul. Mitchell took the baton the moment Nicholls fell and never let go. Dropped off the very first ball of the morning, he responded with exactly the kind of composure that situation demanded, batting through to a brilliant half-century. Nathan Smith gave him decent company too, contributing 38 down the order to push the lead further and further out of England's reach.

Well, that was quick. Just 30 minutes in the second session and the Kiwi lower order is wiped out completely. Much better bowling effort from England on the fourth day. They kept probing on tight lines and lengths and eventually reaped the rewards. But a massive mountain stands in front of them to scale.

Well, it is wrapping up rather quickly for the Kiwis now in an attempt to score some quick runs. The towering figure of Will O'Rourke is the last batter in. Might as well go with the similar attacking approach.

It was just a matter of time for Fisher to fish out Jamieson, given the number of times he beat his outside edge. Matt Henry is the new batter in at number 10. A slight delay as the middle stump, which contains the stump camera, is broken and is being replaced. The needful is done and we are good to resume.

Midas back? Well, some might say desperate measures for desperate situations, but it could also mean understanding the seriousness of the situation. News coming in is that the ECB have announced the return of both, Ben Stokes and Gus Atkinson for the third Test, withdrawing them midway through their county championship matches. Given the inexperience England had in this Test, it is not a surprise to see them take this action, though it also puts into question their stance on behaviours off the field. However, that's not our business. The hosts would be more than happy to get Stokes back at the helm and get some more experience, because looking at this Test and the next coming up within 4 days, it is highly likely that Jofra Archer will miss that clash. The bowling needs some experience too. The Kiwis would be doubly happy - A. They get to fly to Nottingham tonight itself, which means they get an extra day to rest, train and acclimatize. B. They go in with full momentum and a fully fit team for the third and final Test. The third Test is set to begin on Thursday, 25th June, 2026, with the first ball slated to be bowled at 10 am GMT. But rest assured, our buildup will begin well in advance. So do tune in early. It is a bye from us for now, but you can always surf the tabs to catch all the action from the Women's World Cup. Have fun. ADIOS! TAKE CARE!

Been a fantastic week - The victorious skipper of New Zealand, TOM LATHAM, says it has been fantastic week full of moments where the team sustained its efforts for longer and executed brilliantly. On the batting, he points to the partnerships built in the first innings, highlighting Phillips and Jamieson, before the third innings where Henry Nicholls and Rachin Ravindra set the tone. On bowling England out, he says the team understood it was not going to be easy on that surface but sticking to the top of off stump and playing old-school cricket got the job done. On Glenn Phillips, Latham says the group has always known the talent he possesses, and his maiden Test hundred was no surprise to anyone in that dressing room. On how Phillips handled Jofra Archer's hostile spell on the first evening, he says it showed both his ticker and his method under pressure. On Henry Nicholls, he notes it was a different role for him coming in as a replacement, but as the second most experienced player in the group by caps, he played really well to put the team in the position they needed to be in.

Lessons to be learnt - The captain of England, JOE ROOT, comes up with a smile on his face. Credits New Zealand first up, saying that they played really well. Adds that there were a number of cases when the game was in the balance but they turned things around. However, he quickly adds that the series is levelled at 1-1 with everything to play for in the final Test. On his captaincy stint, Root says that it was wonderful to get back into that space and work with head coach Brendon McCullum. Adds that it was great to have young guys come into the team. Explains that in a 5-day game, the players just need to do things better for longer. Details that the first thing is to be switched on at all times and hold onto your catches. Explains that a dropped catch can go a long way to turn the game. However, Root also feels that the youngsters have given a very good account of themselves. Mike Atherton now asks whether Root could have done anything differently on the morning of the second day, given that New Zealand began the day at 291/7 but finished their first innings on 391. To this, Joe credits Glenn Phillips, especially the way he handled the fire from Jofra Archer on the evening of Day 1. But he adds that it is a very good lesson for his side to find areas to keep being relentless. Adds that these are the lessons the young guys can learn quickly in this format and the team as a whole can become better going forward. Further says that in the first innings, the English batters were swinging a bit wildly but in the second, they batted a bit better. Philosophically states that many times, you look at things with different perspectives. Atherton now asks Root whether he enjoyed his captaincy, informing him and everyone that the ECB have decided to pull out Ben Stokes from the county championships. To this, JR diplomatically answers that this last week was very busy for him and he was totally occupied with this job. So he wants everyone to wait and see what happens over the next couple of days.

PLAYER OF THE MATCH - MATT HENRY - 11/109 (MATCH FIGURES) - Matt Henry says he probably didn't expect it to unfold this quick. On the ten-day break between the two Tests, Henry says it helped massively and that the time was spent trying to regain confidence in his body after the back spasm at Lord's. He admits it felt pretty bad letting the guys down on day one there, so coming to The Oval and getting through his full workload means a great deal to him. Henry credits the batters for their small but important contributions and singles out Glenn Phillips for what he did when the ball went soft. On the bowling effort as a collective, he says the way the group applied itself was relentless and that it is nice to get rewards for sticking at it. On Tom Blundell keeping upto the stumps, Matt notes they tried it at the Basin Reserve last year and the team wanted to come out and make things happen. He says you simply cannot do it unless someone of Blundell's quality is standing there. On his own bowling philosophy, MH explains that he would rather be effective than look a hero, and that the focus is always on creating pressure even when the conditions are not offering much. He also reflects on the strength of the bowling group, noting that having Jamieson and O'Rourke back from injuries, along with Nathan Smith, makes them a formidable unit. He says you are only as good as the collective strength of your attack. He adds that the first job on Day 5 was simply to get it done, and they did exactly that.

... POST-MATCH INTERVIEWS ...

Full marks to New Zealand - No doubt. Be it Glenn Phillips in the first innings, fighting his way to a magnificent century, handling Jofra Archer's fire on the opening day or be it the persistence of the three musketeers with the ball - Matt Henry, Kyle Jamieson and Will O'Rourke - the Black Caps played like a unit. Yes, they did get a few chances in the second innings, but by then, they were in a very good position in the match. Individually, the last 12 months have been very good for Matt Henry in particular. He has picked up 32 wickets - the most by a Kiwi in this passage, going wicketless only once in 10 innings, which happened to be in the second innings at Lord's. He was menacing and metronomical, landing the ball on a string, but it would be unfair to credit only him in the bowling department. Let's see what the players have to say.

The small moments - England had their moments, but they missed those. Almost every single time. 1. At the close of Day 1, New Zealand were 291/7, with Jofra Archer spitting steam. Come Day 2, with England looking to wrap the innings quickly, the steam engine was at Hogwarts, with Archer nowhere to be seen with the new ball. Result - the Kiwis nearly got to 400 on the back of just Glenn Phillips -  who was tormented to no end by Archer on Day 1. 2. With 10 minutes left to go for Stumps, James Rew's inexperience cost him as England let go of a fine recovery to end the day on 222/6. Matthew Fisher did give them some hope on the third morning with a fine 50, but a deficit of 100 was too much on this pitch. 3. England had the Kiwis hopping at 28/2 in their second innings. But once the new-ball burst was done, what they saw was a massive 161-run stand between two blokes struggling for form and consistency - Henry Nicholls and Rachin Ravindra. That literally killed the game. 4. 62 runs had come in 8 overs after Tea on Day 4, as England went on to try and repeat their heroics against India here last summer. But some disciplined and tight bowling tested them and they faltered. And just like on Day 2, once again James Rew got dismissed with 10 minutes to the close and England just sank deeper in the mire.

Stars align - At the completion of the first Test, it seemed as if New Zealand were undercooked. But a lot happened off the field after that Test, which totally profited the Kiwis. First, England were literally stripped of key players, resulting in a very inexperinced unit. The second, Matt Henry got fit for this Test and boy, was he not welcomed in style. He was missed at Lord's and he compensated for that with a stunning display here. Additionally, batting second is usually preferred at The Oval, but as the pitch played, batting got trickier as the innings went on.

27 years later - The last time New Zealand played a Test match at The Oval - August 1999. They had defeated England by 83 runs. 27 years later, in 2026, they got their next match and defeated England again, this time by an even bigger margin. Of the 7 venues where they have played a Test match in England, this is only the second where the Kiwis have managed multiple wins, with the other being Headingley. This victory keeps their hopes alive for the 2027 WTC final, moving to 4th in the standings.

Chattogram wins the race. Denying a Banglawash in the third ODI, the Aussies themselves have inflicted a 'Kanga'wash over Bangladesh, winning the 3-match T20I series 3-0. Forced to bowl first, they first choked Bangladesh to 109/8 and then chased it down in 11 overs, losing just 3 wickets.

Interesting point by Simon Doull on air. He reckons that New Zealand would want to wrap this up as soon as possible for an important reason. If the Kiwis win this soon, there is a high likelihood that they can travel to Nottingham tonight itself. As opposed to say, if the match extends beyond Lunch or something, they might be able to travel only tomorrow. The third Test begins on Thursday, so it will be a big deal if they can travel tonight and rest, and get three days to prepare and acclimatize to Trent Bridge. Small small things.

The Oval first, or Chattogram? Very few people would have thought that this match could actually end before the third and final T20I between Bangladesh and Australia. While the Kiwis are just a wicket away from a win here, the Aussies are a couple of sixes away from a whitewash there.