Birmingham: Captain Tom Latham scored the winning runs for New Zealand and sealed the Test series 1-0. The Kiwis only required 38 runs in the 4th innings to win the Test match, and they did it with some ease. The English batsmen showed a dismal performance with the bat in the 3rd innings as they got all-out for a mere 122 runs.
New Zealand pacers made the difference with timely wickets. Even the Mumbai-born left-arm spinner, Ajaz Patel bowled well and picked up 4 wickets in the match. It was a thorough team performance by New Zealand. There was not a single performance that could stand out, but many little contributions from NZ batsmen as well as bowlers. Conway, Young and Taylor's 80-odd runs helped the side go past the English total of 303.
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The second England innings was all about the New Zealand bowlers. Matt Henry cleaned up the English top-order, while the rest also followed, losing 9 wickets at the end of Day 3. England fast bowler Mark Wood was the highest scorer for England with 29 runs. The batting was immensely criticised by the eperts. Former England captain Nasser Hussain wrote (On Sky Sports): "There seems to have been a reinvention of the wheel out there with batting. Techniques out there that everyone else who has played the game before - they are all wrong and we are right. We're going to have these odd little techniques, we're going to have the bat coming across it, we're going to stand funny..."
But the bottom line remains that New Zealand chased down the modest total of 38 runs with 8 wickets in hand. They have announced themselves as strong contenders for the World Test Championship Final which they will play against India on June 18.