Mitchell slammed 108 before getting out to Broad
Daryl Mitchell and Tom Blundell put on an absolute exhibition of top-class test batting against England as Mitchell slammed a sensational 108 and Blundell got out after making a magnificent 96 on day 3 of the first test match at Lord's.
The partnership between these two could well turn out to be the difference-maker in the end, as no other batter from both sides looked even half as comfortable as these two.
At the end of day 2, Mitchell finished with 97*, and Blundell remained unbeaten on 90. Their partnership meant New Zealand stretched its lead to 227 runs over England.
This is some comeback by the Kiwis as they were down in the dumps after being bowled out for a mere 132 in the first innings.
If it wasn't for de Grandhomme's 42, Southee's 26, and Boult's 14, New Zealand would have been all out under 100.
However, due to the above innings, NZ eventually managed to score 132 runs.
But as they say, cricket is a funny game. England came out to bat, looked assured with their defence, and it seemed like they indeed put in a great bowling performance, and the pitch did not have as many demons as NZ made it feel like. But, as soon as Joe Root got out and the scorecard read 92/3, all hell broke loose.
In a matter of minutes, England were reduced to 100/7, and it was all too familiar for the Barmy Army. Boult, Southee, and Kyle Jamieson were the stars with the ball as they picked two wickets each. On the morning of day 2, England was bowled out for 142.
In the second innings, it looked like NZ were again in for a bad performance with the bat after being reduced to 56/4 at one point. But Blundell and Mitchell put up a strong fight, dismantled England's bowling attack, made them pay, and turned the match on its head.
England Playing 11
Zak Crawley, Alex Lees, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes (c), Ben Foakes (wk), Matty Potts, Matthew Parkinson, Stuart Broad, James Anderson
New Zealand Playing 11
Tom Latham, Will Young, Kane Williamson (c), Devon Conway, Daryl Mitchell, Tom Blundell (wk), Colin de Grandhomme, Kyle Jamieson, Tim Southee, Ajaz Patel, Trent Boult
