Innings – New Zealand 348 (Williamson 93, Phillips 58*, Carse 4-64, Bashir 4-69) vs England
New Zealand were greeted by overcast skies and a gentle breeze as they resumed on their overnight 319 for 8, conditions that proved far more conducive to swing bowling than had been the case on a hot and blustery day one.
Tim Southee took this as a cue to get busy, as he cracked Chris Woakes off his length for a first-over boundary, but he was then undone by Carse’s first ball of the morning. He wound into a pull from outside off, and picked out Gus Atkinson at deep square.
Will O’Rourke, however, proved a doughty No.11 – aided by Carse’s failure to attack his stumps as he repeatedly left the ball outside off – and Phillips cashed in briefly to convert his overnight 41 not out to 58 not out.
He had a scare on 42 when Carse, generating a good head of steam, smacked him hard in the grille via a top-edge off the splice, and was then dropped in the same over by Joe Root at slip, a tough diving chance to his right. But Carse eventually got his line to O’Rourke to pluck out his off stump with an outswinging yorker.
