Skittish England collapse as O’Rourke leads New Zealand third-Test fightback

Third Test, day two: NZ 347 and 136-3, England 143
Black Caps lead by 340 runs after England crumble

There is rarely a dull moment with this England team although there are times when their bowlers must surely crave the odd one. The second day in Hamilton felt very much a case in point, with the crypto-graph that is the Bazball form line suffering a lurch southwards through a slightly bewildering batting performance.

Perhaps it was coming and not just by virtue of a series already sewn up. Though well earned in the main, England’s unassailable 2-0 lead over New Zealand involved a couple of telling fightbacks, starting from 71 for four in their first innings in Christchurch, then 43 for four at the Basin Reserve. On both occasions, with assistance from Ollie Pope each time, their saviour was the flaming bat of Harry Brook.

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