Key events
88th over: New Zealand 326-9 (Santner 61, O’ Rourke 0) A boundary! Santner shimmies and sweeps at a slower ball from Potts and slips one through the defensive ring to bring up his thousandth run in Test cricket.
87th over: New Zealand 321-9 (Santner 56, O’ Rourke 0) A loose throw from Jacob Bethell in the deep lets Santner get back for two early in the over. He picks up a third and O’Rourke once more watches the ball and bats it safely down to his boots.
Someone else has chess on the mind. Over to you Guy Hornsby. “Morning Tanya. Another lovely day in Seddon Park. England with the new ball, fielders back, no slips and giving the set batter an easy single of the last ball of an over. Perhaps I’m not the 3-D chess strategist that Stokes is, but can someone explain that to me?
Could it be as simple as a double bluff? Stokes, collar up, beard bushy, moves like he has a cunning plan.
86th over: New Zealand 318-9 (Santner 53, O’ Rourke 0) This is becoming chess-like. Santner risks a single off the fourth ball this time. O’Rourke drops his wrists and lets Potts drop by.
85th over: New Zealand 317-9 (Santner 52, O’ Rourke 0) Atkinson gets one ball at O’Rourke, who survives a short one which seems to angle awkwardly away off the glove.
84th over: New Zealand 316-9 (Santner 51, O’ Rourke 0) Everyone scatters to the boundary rope for Santner. Potts on the money immediately, bright whites, bright light, strong balls. Strangely, the field doesn’t come in for the final ball, Santner steals a single and the strike.
And hello Kimberley Thonger. “Guten Abend Tanya, from a very merry Munich.
“I feel sure both sides will have been up all night watching Chris McCausland’s remarkable Strictly victory. Well done him.
“I’m reminded of the huge talent of Colin Milburn, of Northamptonshire and England, also with initials CM, who sadly lost most of his sight but battled on. The cricket writer Colin Bateman commented, “he was a clean, natural hitter of the ball who had an infectious zest for the game and life”. Bateman added, “he hit the ball with the strength of a lumberjack and he had the courage of a lion, but he was no Neanderthal clubber”.
“ If anyone has knowledge of Milburn’s dancing abilities I think we should know. My memory of his movement towards the bowler from the crease suggests the quickstep might have been his speciality.”
Morning session
83rd over: New Zealand 315-9 (Santner 50, O’ Rourke 0) Atkinson’s first ball dances down the leg side, the next two whistle past the outside edge. A maiden. Over on the grassy banks, the Barmy Army have high early morning energy, though I’m glad that trumpet isn’t next to me on the sofa.
David Gower is quizzing bowling coach Jimmy Anderson. “Are you,” asks David, “an instinct or a computer coach?”
Jimmy looks bewildered: “instinct, I don’t have a computer.”
He goes on: “It was an interesting wicket. With the cloud cover yesterday morning I thought it did quite a lot, but that got less and less. I thought maybe it dried out and became slower.”
Some Saturday night stattage: Latham and Young’s partnership of 105 was the first hundred partnership of the series.
And the last five overs of Friday went for 11 runs each as Southee and Santner played whoopee.
Finally – in case you missed it – Mark Ramprakash on England’s new young guns.
And a cracking piece on the Gabba, where weather ruined the first day of the crucial third Test between Australia and India.
No cricket yet, so currently watching Last Christmas Unwrapped. Our reporter on the ground says it is currently “cracking the flags” at Seddon Park.
Here is Ali’s report from yesterday:
From a Christmas treed living room, hello! We’re back in Auckland for day two of the final Test – the series in the bag but the game in the balance.
New Zealand enjoyed a great first half to Friday, after Ben Stokes sent them in to pad up after winning the toss. But, as has happened so often this series, England’s pace bowlers got their fingernails under the bottle cap and started to nudge. A wicketless morning had steamed along to 185 for three when Kane Williamson was undone by – in the wonderful words of Ali Martin – his L’Occitane-soft hands.
From there, England picked away effectively until Santner and Southee took New Zealand past 300. There were three wickets each for Potts and Anderson, two for Carse and one for the hard-bowling Stokes.
Reports from Auckland are that it is a scorcher, but if you didn’t swim early you’ve missed high tide till late… Play starts at 10pm GMT, do join me to watch and wish you were there.
