Despite losing as many as four wickets in the first hour of the morning session on Day 5 of the Wellington Test, Joe Root put England on course for a series sweep as well as their seventh successive Test win – a feat last achieved by England 19 years ago. Wagner however, kept the Kiwi hopes alive as he first bounced out an iffy Ben Stokes and then dismissed Root to expose the tail and leave them with an uphill task of ticking off the remaining 56 runs.
From 80 for 5, Root and Stokes arrested England’s slide and quickly put their side in the ascendancy. The England captain, who suffered a knee injury, played second fiddle to an on-song Root, who went to Lunch break on a run-a-ball 74.
Brief Scores: England 435/8 decl. (Harry Brook 186, Joe Root 153*; Matt Henry 4-100, Michael Bracewell 2-54) & 256 (Joe Root 95, Ben Foakes 35; Neil Wagner 4-62, Tim Southee 3-45) lost to New Zealand 209 (Tim Southee 73, Tom Blundell 38; Stuart Broad 4-61, James Anderson 3-37) & 483 (Kane Williamson 132, Tom Blundell 90; Jack Leach 5-157) by 1 run
BIG MOMENT
Joe Root is gone ☝️
England are still 56 runs to win with only 3 wickets remaining now… #NZvENG pic.twitter.com/W7c1Bzcfcb
— Cricket on BT Sport (@btsportcricket) February 28, 2023
