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Nitin Patel, the physiotherapist of the India team, resigned during the IPL citing personal reasons

Amol Karhadkar26-May-2015Besides finalising the new coach of the India team, the BCCI will also have to search for a new chief physiotherapist after Nitin Patel resigned from the post.Patel is understood to have put in his papers during the IPL, citing personal reasons. Though the resignation has not been formally accepted yet, a BCCI insider revealed that Patel had “made up his mind since he wants to spare more time at home”.Patel has been one of the longest-serving support staff members of the national team. Ever since being roped in midway through India’s tour to England in 2007, after John Gloster had been injured, Patel has emerged as one of the key backroom staff for India.For the last couple of years, Patel had been touring with the India team primarily for limited-overs series and used to look after the rehabilitation of BCCI-contracted players at the National Cricket Academy in Bangalore. He had been instrumental in relocating the injury rehabilitation centre from Bangalore to the Sri Ramachandra Medical College campus in Chennai last year. Besides helping in healing player injuries, Patel also developed the modules for the BCCI’s physiotherapy training courses.

Lions consolidated their position at the top of the table by beating Cobras. Warriors and Dolphins are still looking for points after their game was washed out

ESPNcricinfo staff10-Nov-2012
ScorecardLions increased the gap between them and the rest with a third consecutive win in the Momentum One Day Cup, beating Cape Cobras by 19 runs at Newlands. It was their hardest-fought win yet.After choosing to bat on a slightly difficult pitch, Lions made a positive start, reaching 65 for 0 and then 101 for 2 in the 23rd over. It was then that Gulam Bodi, whose 45 was eventually the innings’ top score, was run out by Justin Ontong. Lions lost two more wickets for 22 runs and their momentum was shot. Temba Bavuma and Zander de Bruyn made 30s but were dismissed before converting their starts into substantial scores. Johann Louw and Justin Kemp took two wickets each for Cobras as Lions were restricted to 248 for 9.The Cobras chase got off to a swift start, with Richard Levi leading the way. Andrew Puttick’s struggle – 13 off 32 balls – ended in the 10th over, and then Levi was dismissed in the next, leaving Cobras on 55 for 2. From 99 for 2 they slipped further to 158 for 6 in the 36th over, with none of the top and middle-order batsmen making significant contributions. However, the equation boiled down to 47 runs to get off 40 balls with four wickets in hand, and Cobras were in the game. Ethan O’Reilly then struck the telling blow, Kemp caught behind for 24, and Cobras were eventually dismissed for 229. O’Reilly finished with 3 for 61, but the Lions spinner Aaron Phangsio proved most economical, taking 1 for 31 in ten overs.Despite maintaining their 100% win record, Lions captain Stephen Cook asked for improvement from his side. “We probably didn’t play as well as we have the last few games,” he said. “Perhaps we were a tad lucky to get over the line at the end, but that keeps everyone honest and working hard at their game.”The Cobras captain Ontong was disappointed with his team’s batting. “I thought we didn’t get a partnership going and, although a couple of the guys got starts, we just couldn’t really kick on,” he said. “We’ve got to do some hard work now and get some wins under our belts.”Cobras are third in the points table with one win in three games.Match abandoned
ScorecardOnly 17 overs were possible at Kingsmead before rain washed out the game between Dolphins and Warriors. After getting sent in to bat, Dolphins had reached 67 for 2, with Makhaya Ntini and Wayne Parnell striking for Warriors.Neither team has won a match in the tournament so far and they are at the bottom of the points table.

A court heard on Friday during the alleged spot-fixing trial defendant Mohammed Asif insist that he was not protecting his former captain Salman Butt

Richard Sydenham at Southwark Crown Court14-Oct-2011A court heard on Friday during the alleged spot-fixing trial defendant Mohammed Asif insist that he was not protecting his former captain Salman Butt and denied that Butt had ever put pressure on him to bowl no-balls or to cheat in any other way.On the eighth day of the trial at Southwark Crown Court, the jury heard a transcript of an initial police interview with Asif in September last year, shortly after the publication of an undercover investigation into alleged corruption by the Pakistan cricketers and Majeed, released in the .The transcript was read out in role play format between policeman at the time Detective Constable John Massey and Sarah Whitehouse for the prosecution. Asif, though, was not present at the time as he arrived two hours late.When the court heard how Asif was questioned on whether he was protecting Butt, he replied: “No…I’m going to protect myself. How can I protect Salman Butt. Even in the game and in my life I am going to protect myself.”When police probed further and asked Asif if he was being put under any pressure by Butt not to tell the truth, Asif was again firm in his response: “No pressure, how can he put pressure on me? How can he pressurise me? Nobody can pressurise me as I have played in the (Pakistan) team for a long time.”The police interview also heard, which had been revealed earlier in the trial, how there was no marked money found in Asif’s room, but there was in the hotel rooms of Butt and Mohammad Amir at the time of police searches.Asif also revealed that his initial agent was Mazhar’s older brother Azhar but he switched to Mazhar “seven or eight months ago”, yet added that despite conversations of potential income, he had never received any money from either of the Majeed’s.Butt and Asif are facing charges of conspiracy to cheat, and conspiracy to obtain and accept corrupt payments, following the Lord’s Test in August last year when they allegedly conspired with agent Mazhar Majeed, teenage fast bowler Amir and other people unknown to bowl pre-determined no-balls. Butt and Asif deny the charges.The case continues.

After days of rain, the weather in Mirpur improved to allow a full one-day international and it was Bangladesh’s spinners who shone, dismissing New Zealand cheaply to secure a seven-wicket victory

The Bulletin by Andrew Fernando11-Oct-2010
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Suhrawadi Shuvo took 3 for 14 in ten overs to help dismiss New Zealand cheaply•AFP

Bangladesh took an unassailable 2-0 lead in the series, and won two consecutive ODIs against top-flight opposition for the first time in their 232-match history, by cruising to a seven-wicket victory in the third one-dayer at the Sher-e-Bangla Stadium in Mirpur. The stage was set for Bangladesh’s batsmen after their spinners had decimated the New Zealand line-up – and they didn’t disappoint, hunting down the meagre total of 173 in 40 overs, ensuring the visitors had to win both the remaining matches to draw the five-match contest.The trio of Bangladesh’s left-arm spinners were into the game early after Shafiul Islam had removed the dangerous Brendon McCullum in the first over, and they tore out the heart of the New Zealand batting line-up, reducing them to 101 for 7 in the 33rd over. A belligerent 72-run association between Ross Taylor and Kyle Mills revived the innings, but a total of 173 was always going to be tough to defend, especially with the New Zealand seam bowlers yet to find their radar on this rain-ridden tour.The Bangladesh openers began positively in pursuit of New Zealand’s total, smartly putting away bad balls through point and down the ground to reach 35 for no loss after five overs, before the lunch break interrupted their progress. Not much changed after the stoppage, though, as both
batsmen continued to pick up regular boundaries, with a particularly handsome on-drive from Imrul Kayes standing out. The fifty came in just 7.4 overs and not even the introduction of the ever-
threatening Daniel Vettori – so often the bane of Bangladesh in these one-day encounters – could prevent the batsmen from scoring over five an over with relative ease. It was a day when everything
was going right for them.Shahriar Nafees was effective square of the wicket on the off side, and he brought up his half-century with a cover drive off Andy McKay in the 16th over. Neither batsmen was troubled by
the wayward bowling and they rotated strike intelligently, with the more circumspect Kayes feeding the strike to his aggressive partner.The century partnership between the Bangladesh openers was only the third such stand in 19 matches against New Zealand. By the time Nafees chipped Nathan McCullum to mid-on for a run-a-ball 73, only 47 runs were required for victory. Imrul Kayes also fell soon after reaching his fifty, again trying to loft McCullum over cover, but the Bangladesh middle order ensured that the home team got home with plenty of overs and wickets to spare.This significant victory, however, had been set up in the first half of the match, when BJ Watling and Jesse Ryder’s attempts to steadily rebuild the innings after the early loss of McCullum were thwarted by the hosts’ spinners, who began operating at both ends after just eight overs had been bowled by the fast bowlers. Both batsmen holed out trying to accelerate, and the wickets continued to fall in quick succession. Grant Elliott was bowled by a delivery from Shakib that broke sharply off the slowish surface, and Suhrawadi Shuvo added the scalps of Daniel Vettori and Shanan Stewart to the wicket of Ryder to complete his three-wicket haul.McCullum didn’t last long at the crease either, leaving the New Zealand innings in tatters. Taylor, who had played a lone hand, finally found some support in Mills, and the pair went about setting a new New Zealand record for the eighth wicket, scoring 72 runs off 64 deliveries. Taylor was typically strong on the leg side, slamming four sixes and four fours in his unbeaten innings of 62, Mills also smacked three magnificent sixes down the ground.Despite the expensive period of play for Bangladesh, it was business as usual following the wicket of Mills, as Mahmudullah dismissed Tim Southee and Andy McKay in successive deliveries to end the innings. The total was made to look extremely average by a Bangladesh top order that seems to be growing in confidence in the one-day format.

Imran Khan, the former Pakistan captain, has undergone emergency surgery for an intestinal blockage

Cricinfo staff11-Nov-2009Imran Khan, the former Pakistan captain, has undergone emergency surgery for an intestinal blockage. He was operated on at Lahore’s Shaukat Khanum Cancer Hospital (which he built in memory of his mother) on Monday afternoon after complaining of severe abdominal pain.Imran, 56, captained Pakistan to glory in the 1992 World Cup and formed a political party -Tehreek-e-Insaaf – after his retirement. “He suffered cramps in his small intestine while exercising and was taken to hospital for diagnosis where doctors decided on surgery,” a spokesman for his party said. “Imran is out of danger and his condition is stable now.”Imran is in intensive care and has been advised to remain in the hospital for at least three days.

“There’s been no charges laid, but to have an opposition swarm the non-striker like that, we’ve got a duty of care to our player to make sure he’s okay”

Andrew McGlashan04-Jan-2025Australia coach Andrew McDonald has accused India of attempting to intimidate Sam Konstas with the way they celebrated the wicket of Usman Khawaja late on the opening day at the SCG.In a dramatic finish to play, Konstas got involved in a verbal exchange with Jasprit Bumrah over Khawaja’s attempts to ensure it was the final over, with the umpire stepping in. Two deliveries later, Khawaja nicked the last delivery of the day to slip with Bumrah turning and advancing towards Konstas with visible aggression.Related

• Bumrah vs Konstas continues to enliven Border-Gavaskar Trophy

• Boland four-for, Pant fireworks keep SCG Test in balance

• Stats – Bumrah hits new high, Kohli suffers new low

• Border-Gavaskar Trophy nears dramatic conclusion after 15-wicket day

McDonald spoke with Konstas after the incident to make sure the 19-year-old had not been shaken by India’s reaction to him.”My conversation with him was around whether he’s okay. Clearly, the way India celebrated that was quite intimidating,” McDonald said. “It’s clearly within the laws of the game, the rules and regulations. There’s been no charges laid, but to have an opposition swarm the non-striker like that, we’ve got a duty of care to our player to make sure he’s okay and in a headspace to go out there and perform.”Pressed on whether he felt India had gone too far, McDonald added, “It’s clear that’s acceptable because there was no fines or punishments, so I’ll leave that up the ICC – Andy Pycroft being the match referee – and the umpires out there. If they thought it was satisfactory then I suppose that’s the benchmark we are playing towards.”Konstas advanced to 23 on the second morning, which included using his feet to Bumrah to drive him down the ground and bringing out another scoop to deep third, before edging Mohammed Siraj into the slips. Bumrah, who was fielding at mid-on, did not immediately head towards the Indian huddle when the wicket fell and appeared instead to walk in Konstas’ direction.”We enjoy the way that he plays the game and we would also like to play the game aggressively,” Prasidh Krishna said after the second day’s play. “If we have somebody that comes up and says I can fight you, as a team we want to tell them we are here and you can’t take us for granted. We are all here, 11 of us versus you. If you can be as aggressive, that’s fine.”During his debut at the MCG, Konstas was shoulder-barged by Virat Kohli during his 60 off 65 balls in the first innings.Speaking before play on the second day in Sydney, Ricky Ponting said he did not like the way Konstas had inserted himself into the situation the previous evening.”I didn’t like Konstas getting involved,” he told . “That was not his battle to fight. It was between Khawaja and Bumrah. So, for the young man there, I hope that there was some talking to from the Australian dressing room last night because he should have stayed out of it, let his senior player try and handle the last couple of balls. And of course, when you play with the game, the game has a way of coming back and biting. That happened to Khawaja last night.”

The tournament has had its first upset – and one of the biggest of all time – while two teams face an almost must-win clash in Lucknow

ESPNcricinfo staff15-Oct-20233:56

Trott: ‘Manner and margin of Afghanistan’s win makes it significant’

—Fixtures | Squads | Points table | Tournament Index

Top Story: The Great Upset – Afghanistan bring World Cup to life with England conquest

Afghanistan claimed the most famous scalp of their international history, and in the process provided the first big shock of the 2023 World Cup, by routing England’s world champions by 69 runs in a spin-and-seam masterclass under the Delhi floodlights.Their dominance was set in motion by a fearless display of power-hitting from the 21-year-old Rahmanullah Gurbaz, whose 80 from 57 had promised so much more until a run-out sawed him off in his prime. But Ikram Alikhil marshalled Afghanistan’s lower-order with a precious half-century in his first game of this year’s World Cup, whereupon they set about making a target of 285 seem as dim and distant as England’s hopes of defending their title must now feel.Click here for the full report

Match analysis: Forget Bazball, this was Gurbazball

Rashid Khan clinches Afghanistan’s historic win against England•Getty Images

The ball skidded past Mark Wood’s bat and into the stumps, and Rashid Khan stood with his arms outstretched, arching his back and facing the night sky. It was a moment to savour, one which will reverberate across Delhi, India and far beyond: Afghanistan had not only beaten the world champions, but thrashed them.This was the performance of a team with no fear or inhibition, attacking first with the bat and then with the ball. Afghanistan had won once in their 17 previous World Cup matches, a one-wicket victory over Scotland eight years ago: they were a team with nothing to lose, who gained everything.Amid political turmoil and humanitarian crises, India has become a home away from home for Afghanistan. This, their most famous night as a sporting nation, came in front of over 25,000 fans in a city with a substantial Afghan diaspora. Many of them waved Afghanistan flags and danced along as played over the PA system.Read the full analysis by Matt Roller in Delhi

Have your say: Which is England’s most shocking loss?England have been on the wrong end of some big upsets in ICC events and have been shocked once again in this World Cup, by Afghanistan in Delhi. Which of these defeats was the most surprising? Click here to vote

Must Watch: Aaron Finch on Pat Cummins

4:43

Finch: ‘Everyone in the team respects Cummins and his tactics’

News headlines

• Travis Head is hopeful of being able to fly out to join Australia’s World Cup squad later this week as he continues to recover from his fractured hand
• England captain Jos Buttler has said the team “must let this defeat hurt” after they were toppled by Afghanistan

Match preview

Australia vs Sri Lanka, Lucknow (2pm IST; 8.30am GMT; 7.30pm AEST)1:32

Kumble on Australia’s limited spin attack

Even in a tournament with nine group-stage matches which allows room for a slip up or two, you don’t want to be 0-3 early in the competition. But that’s exactly the situation which will confront one of Australia and Sri Lanka after they face off in Lucknow in what already shapes as a contest to retain realistic semi-final hopes. It has been a tough start for both sides, but two points in this fixture will revive belief that they can still challenge for the top four.Full previewTeam newsAustralia (probable): 1 David Warner, 2 Mitchell Marsh, 3 Steven Smith, 4 Marnus Labuschagne, 5 Josh Inglis (wk), 6 Glenn Maxwell, 7 Marcus Stoinis, 8 Mitchell Starc, 9 Pat Cummins (capt), 10 Adam Zampa, 11 Josh HazlewoodSri Lanka (probable): 1 Pathum Nissanka, 2 Kusal Perera, 3 Kusal Mendis (capt, wk), 4 Sadeera Samarawickrama, 5 Charith Asalanka, 6 Dhananjaya de Silva, 7 Dunith Wellalage, 8 Chamika Karunaratne, 9 Maheesh Theekshana, 10 Kasun Rajitha, 11 Dilshan Madushanka

Feature: Tired and tested – Australia’s challenges at this World Cup

It’s no doubt a view coloured by recent results and the mediaperson’s tendency to hanker for shiny new things to talk about, but there’s a definite jadedness to Australia’s ODI set-up. Where some other teams – India, for instance – have torn up their ODI template and started over more than once over the last two World Cup cycles, Australia continue to play the way they’ve always played. They have an explosive line-up buttressed by a pair of busy anchors, and they trust in their best – which usually translates to Test – fast bowlers no matter what the conditions are.Read the full piece by Karthik Krishnaswamy in Lucknow

Lancashire spare Derbyshire’s blushes over potential Michael Bublé clash

Matt Roller04-Jul-2022Warwickshire will squeeze a home quarter-final into Edgbaston’s packed schedule after talks with the ECB and have slashed ticket prices for Thursday’s fixture against Hampshire.Edgbaston is hosting the ongoing, rescheduled fifth Test between England and India, which is due to finish on Tuesday, and will then stage the second T20I between the same teams on Saturday. It will then host a County Championship game later this month, the women’s T20 competition at the Commonwealth Games, four Hundred matchdays (including three double-headers) and four Royal London Cup games before the end of August, putting huge demands on its groundstaff and testing the appetite for cricket in the Midlands.The original schedule for the Blast’s quarter-finals involved two games on Friday to avoid a clash in television slots with England’s T20Is, but after talks with the ECB, Warwickshire have moved the game to Thursday night. The game will be streamed live online but not televised, with Sky Sports showing the first T20I instead.Adult tickets are available for £10 in advance, with juniors either free or £1. “We’ve been working with ECB over the last few weeks to try and accommodate a home quarter-final at Edgbaston, despite the LV= Insurance Test Match and Vitality IT20 taking place in the same week,” Alex Perkins, Warwickshire’s sales and marketing director, said.”We’re delighted that we’ve been able to make this work and give our members and fans the opportunity to support the Bears in a big quarter-final at home. We hope members, fans and the local community will come out in force to make it a memorable occasion and we have reflected this ambition with a one-off pricing model in order to create another special Edgbaston atmosphere.”Related

• Moeen Ali signs for Warwickshire on three-year deal

• Aussies in the Blast: Who stood out during the group stage?

• Hartley applies the long handle as Lancs leap into home quarter

• Smeed loves living in the 90s as Somerset defeat Surrey

• Hampshire warm up for quarters with ninth win in ten

Surrey have also cut prices for their quarter-final against Yorkshire at the Kia Oval on Wednesday, with adult tickets £15 in advance and under-16s free, while Lancashire’s start at £12 for adults and £1 for juniors. Somerset’s home ground, Taunton, is the smallest quarter-final venue by a distance and tickets are on sale at the usual price.The Bears’ defeat to Lancashire on Sunday night did not affect their status as North Group winners but did spare Derbyshire’s blushes by pushing them down into third, meaning they will play Somerset in Sunday’s fourth quarter-final.Derbyshire have only qualified for a home quarter-final once in the competition’s previous 19 seasons and did not foresee that they would this year, having rescheduled a Michael Bublé concert at the County Ground to July 9. If Lancashire had lost on Sunday, Derbyshire would have been unable to use their home ground and were expected to cede home advantage altogether, leading Dominic Cork, their former captain and coach, to fume on Sky: “If Derbyshire miss out on a home quarter-final because of a concert, it’s nonsense, absolute nonsense.”Surrey, Yorkshire and Lancashire are all bracing to be without several first-choice players due to England’s T20I series. The ECB said that there may be some scope for players to be released from the squad at short notice but that the situation is “quite fluid” and decisions will be made on a “case-by-case” basis.”It’s always difficult but we’ve had that in the past and we know what’s coming,” Dane Vilas, Lancashire’s captain, said. “It’s good for the guys that they get recognition for playing well and I’ve always said, if you play well in a good team, you’re going to get selected which is fantastic and that’s what we want. It’s going to be a bit of a headache for us but we’ve got the guys who want to come in and play.”The Blast’s semi-final draw is predetermined by group standings and has thrown up the possibility of a first-ever Finals Day Roses match, with the winner of Surrey vs Yorkshire drawn to play the winner of Lancashire vs Essex. In the other semi-final, the winner of Bears vs Hampshire will play the winner of Somerset vs Derbyshire.Quarter-final fixtures:
July 6 (6.30pm) – Surrey vs Yorkshire, The Kia Oval
July 7 (6.30pm) – Bears vs Hampshire, Edgbaston
July 8 (6.30pm) – Lancashire vs Essex, Emirates Old Trafford
July 9 (7pm) – Somerset vs Derbyshire, TauntonSemi-final draw:
Winner of Surrey-Yorkshire vs winner of Lancashire-Essex
Winner of Bears-Hampshire vs winner of Somerset-Derbyshire

The Redbacks lost 9 for 76 after being on course to haul down a huge target at the WACA

Andrew McGlashan02-Mar-2021Cameron Green and Travis Head traded spectacular centuries at the WACA but it was a South Australia collapse that decided the game as Western Australia secured the win in a contest that had 725 runs, including four centuries.Green scored his first one-day hundred from 82 balls, powering the latter part of Western Australia’s innings with some fierce strokeplay, but Head responded in kind with a brilliant 68-ball century, which put his team on course in a rollicking stand of 226 in 25 overs with Harry Nielsen, who struck a maiden one-day hundred too.However, when Head was run-out – beaten by Green’s strong arm – it started a collapse of 9 for 76 as the middle order lost its cool. Alex Carey was also run-out, through an excellent gather by wicketkeeper Josh Inglis, without facing a ball before Nielsen and Callum Ferguson brought the equation down to 55 off 43 balls with seven wickets in hand.Ferguson missed a hack across the line against Aaron Hardie, who then had Nielsen caught at deep cover, and the lower order couldn’t recover. Cam Valente gave South Australia an outside chance of getting 15 of the last over but he became the fourth run-out of the innings as he tried to keep the strike but failed.The target was within sight for South Australia as long as Travis Head was around•Getty Images

It meant another agonising near-miss for the Redbacks on their trip west after they came within one wicket of securing victory in the Sheffield Shield.While the game was decided by a collapse and some rather headless batting, there was some outstanding strokeplay throughout the day.Green, who scored an unbeaten 168 in the Shield game, had taken time to lay himself a base and was 33 off 45 after playing out a maiden from Daniel Worrall in the 33rd over. He then cut loose, bringing up his half-century with three consecutive sixes off Head and there was no stopping him after that. The last 56 balls of his stay brought 111 runs as he carted the ball to all parts of his home ground, which included five fours off the first five balls of Worrall’s ninth over.Shaun Marsh had earlier brought up his 19th hundred in the format off a comparatively sedate 99 deliveries in a stand of 156 in 22 overs for the third wicket with Green. Green and Inglis then added the finished touches with a partnership of 88 in seven overs.Remarkably, though, it did not look like it would be enough as Head produced a thrilling display of striking, which followed his double-century in the Shield earlier in the week. He struck his first ball for four although he wasn’t consistently above a run-a-ball until passing 20.He went to his fifty from 39 balls with a six off Charles Stobo in the 24th over, which cost 21 and really kick-started the chase when the required rate had passed nine an over. After celebrating the hundred, which required just a further 29 deliveries, he was sending the ball to and over the boundary almost at will until he was caught just short coming back for a second.Western Australia had an opening and they made it count, although the Redbacks will know a stunning chase slipped from their grasp.

Half-centuries for Denly, Pope and Buttler lift England away from trouble

George Dobell in Whangarei16-Nov-20191:11

Buttler, Pope, Denly fifties shore up England

Joe Denly proved his form and fitness for next week’s first Test against New Zealand with an increasingly assured half-century in Whangarei.Denly damaged his ankle ligaments ahead of the T20I series just over two weeks ago. Tripping on a boundary rope as he attempted to take a catch in training, the early prognosis was that he would be struggling to recover in time for the Test series.But he not only demonstrated his fitness here, he showed the tempo and technique that England require from their No. 3. And while there were moments when he looked hurried – he was a little fortunate to survive one delivery from the admirably hostile Kyle Jamieson that reared on him and produced a fence that flew between slips and gully – he was, for the most part, admirably compact. On the drive and pull, he is as elegant as anyone in this team.”When I first did it I was probably thinking my tour was over,” Denly said afterwards. “It was pretty nasty. I was lucky not to do some really serious damage and it was always touch and go to get ready for this game. There was a bit of doubt.”But it’s settled down nicely. Whether it’s the running between the wickets or playing all the shots, it feels fine. There’s no discomfort. It’s just a case of monitoring it and making sure it doesn’t swell up overnight.”Joe Denly made an encouraging comeback from injury

Denly’s intervention helped ensure it was, in the end, a pretty decent day for England. Having set themselves the challenge of batting for a full three sessions – if that sounds like a modest aspiration, it’s worth remembering that this is a side which has been bowled out for under 100 three times this year – they did so for the loss of eight wickets (and seven on the day) gaining time at the crease and acclimatising to the slower pace of life in this format of the game.It wasn’t entirely comfortable. The first hour or so saw New Zealand’s fast bowlers extract life from the pitch that was absent for all but Jofra Archer when England had the ball and, had Ollie Pope been dismissed on 7, nibbling outside off stump, they would have been 126 for 6 and in some trouble.As it was, however, Scott Kuggeleijn (playing, with England’s blessing, as a far from like-for-like concussion replacement for Hamish Rutherford who had been struck by an Archer bouncer the previous day), had over-stepped and Pope was reprieved. He and Denly subsequently added 90 in 20.4 overs for England’s sixth wicket.Pope’s contribution was, perhaps, just as important as Denly’s. Despite his excellent record – he goes into the Test series averaging 59.52 in first-class cricket – Pope still has the reputation as something of a dasher. So it was encouraging to see him leave the ball shrewdly here, while still picking up runs from deflections off his hip and steers into the covers as much as from putting away the loose ball.”Chris Silverwood has said he doesn’t care how long it takes, he just wants big runs from us,” Denly said. “That’s what we’ve spoken about as a group: scoring big runs in the first innings, especially.”Earlier England had struggled against an admirable new-ball attack. Dom Sibley, struck on the helmet by a well-directed short ball from the impressive Jamieson, was then lured into an uncharacteristic drive outside off stump before Joe Root and Ben Stokes departed within a couple of minutes of one another.Root could, perhaps, count himself unfortunate: replays suggested there may have been an inside edge on the delivery that was adjudged to have trapped him leg before. Stokes edged to the cordon as he attempted to leave one that bounced on him more than he anticipated.Ollie Pope leans into a drive

As the evening wore on, there were runs for Jos Buttler, too. The most dramatic phase of his innings came towards the close as England looked to set-up a declaration; at one stage, his successive scoring strokes were 4, 4, 4, 2, 4, 4, 4, 6, 6, 4. Impressive as it was – few hit the ball as cleanly as Buttler in full flow – it was the manner in which he built his innings before that point that was most assuring for England.Buttler is, in some ways, fortunate to make this tour. While Jonny Bairstow was dropped having averaged 23.77 in the Ashes, Buttler was retained having averaged 24.70. But the England management reasoned that Buttler went into that series suffering more than most from the emotionally draining World Cup experience and that, having benefitted from a rest, he would rediscover his best form.On this early evidence, that would appear to have been sound judgement. Buttler has sometimes looked solid and sometimes dazzled in his Test career to date, but has rarely put the two together in a way that suggested he had found a method that maximised his undoubted abilities. He has, at this point, scored only one first-class century since June 2014 and five in total.But while Denly, pulling straight to midwicket, and Pope, slogging to mid-off, squandered their chances of a century, Buttler got his head down and showed he had been listening to the orders of his new coach. He looked not just a fine strokemaker, but a fine batsman.