Summary

Have your say on England men this summer

Live Reporting

by Mike Peter & Timothy Abraham

  1. Get Involved

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    Had enough of the negativity. This team aren’t perfect and sometimes I get frustrated by their tactics, but the idea that they don’t care about winning is ridiculous. Ben Stokes is a fantastic cricketer, we’ve been lucky to have him and will miss him enormously. And this match isn’t over yet…!

    Alice, Surrey

  2. Eng 189-6

    Gus Atkinson has 18 off 66 balls at the end of a Ben Sears over in which he picked up a single off the penulimate delivery.

    He's faced more balls than any other England batter in this Test match.

    Is this the kind of application many fans have been calling out for on a day like today?

  3. Daniel Norcross
    Test Match Special commentator on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

    If England were only four down at this point, with these runs, then it would put pressure back on New Zealand.

  4. Eng 188-6

    Another clean strike from Jamie Smith.

    The England wicketkeeper opens his shoulders to Mitchell Santner's second ball of the over and whacks him back over his head.

    Not quite enough on it to go all the way over the ropes but more than enough to go for four.

  5. Jonathan Agnew
    BBC Chief Cricket Commentator on Test Match Special

    Yesterday it felt like they were burning down the house.

    Once the skipper came out and played like that, it felt like 'we're going to do mayhem here'.

  6. Eng 177-6

    Lots of ohhs and ahhs from the New Zealand fielders crowded round the bat as Mitchell Santner continues to wheel away with his left-arm spin.

    The Kiwis trying to create a bit of theatre to bring about a dismissal but Gus Atkinson and Jamie Smith nudge and nurdle into the gaps.

  7. Eng 173-6

    Ben Sears with a maiden, seen off by Jamie Smith.

    Apart from the run out of Joe Root, when he made a risky call, Smith has been calm and measured this morning.

  8. How's stat?!

    Ashwanth R Kavuluri
    CricViz analyst

    Mitchell Santner is getting an average turn of 4.4° in this session so far, that is the highest recorded average turn in any session of the series. Overall, Santner has found 4.2° turn on average in this innings, the highest by any spinner in an innings in this series.

  9. Eng 173-6

    Mitchell Santner gets another one to rag away from a rather uncompromising waft from Gus Atkinson

    There's just 30 minutes until lunch.

    New Zealand still have some work to do. However, you sense in these matches it could happen very quickly once a wicket does go down.

  10. Get Involved

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    Loved Bazball. Never really understood how you could score so many runs in other formats but not Tests. Loved Ben Stokes’ attitude. But maybe that attitude became the problem - inflexible, stubborn, won’t follow rules, one dimensional play, unteachable. Go a hero, thank you, but go.

    Jonathan, Surrey

  11. Eng 171-6

    Target 373

    Ben Sears into the attack for the first time today.

    Jamie Smith and Gus Atkinson farm the strike fairly comfortably.

  12. Get Involved

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    NZ have virtually no bowling left - this game was there to be won against two fit seamers and an out-of-sorts spinner.

    Wilf, Canterbury

    This chase was always going to be a stretch but this has been insanity. It's the equivalent of children losing a game and throwing a tantrum. The 2027 Ashes will be a whitewash without significant ECB action in the next 12 months.

    Ade, Denby Dale, West Yorks

    The man is a legend but yesterday made me cringe. Performative, self-indulgent sentimentality. And away from all the confected drama, a decent Test match degenerated into the Ben Stokes beer match. In my admittedly outdated view, a battling draw would have been a fitting tribute.

    Simon, Hackney

  13. Steven Finn
    Former England fast bowler on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

    That was really floated up by Mitchell Santner.

  14. 6 runs

    Eng 168-6

    Jamie Smith decides to loosen the shackles a little against Mitichell Santner.

    The England wicketkeeper crisply hits the left-arm spinner back over his head for six straight over the long-off boundary.

  15. Eng 162-6

    Target 373

    Zak Foulkes strays on to the pads of Gus Atkinson, who picks up his first boundary of the day with a flick which goes fine for four.

    Can England get through until lunch with these two still at the crease?

  16. How's stat?!

    Andy Zaltzman
    Test Match Special statistician

    In this match, England have reached 150 at 24.1 and 26 overs, these are the first and fourth quickest 150s posted in Test cricket in this country.

  17. Jeremy Coney
    Former New Zealand captain on BBC Test Match Special

    That ball surprised both Gus Atkinson and Tom Blundell, who didn't catch it.

  18. Eng 158-6

    Mitchell Santner finds a bit of extravagant turn with the first delivery of his fifth over which flummoxes Gus Atkinson.

    The left-arm spinner tosses his fifth ball up and Gus Atkinson makes clean contact but his drive is stopped by the fielder in the covers.

    More big turn from the final ball of the over as Jamie Smith defends.

  19. Jonathan Agnew
    BBC Chief Cricket Commentator on Test Match Special

    There's more to come from Ben Stokes' decision. There must be.

  20. Eng 157-6

    A friend of mine, Simon, called it Cristiano Ronaldo-esque in its nature so I can understand why some people think there has been a bit of main character syndrome about it.

    Zak Foulkes keeps Jamie Smith honest, but pitch appears to have settled a little following that opening half hour or so.