The first test match featuring England and New Zealand is already underway, and things are shaping up beautifully with the hosts requiring 61 runs to win while still having 5 wickets in their control. Joe Root is now standing on 77 for England, and Ben Stokes achieved a crucial half-century before going out in the closing hour of the day’s innings. Here in this article, we talk about ENG vs NZ 1st Test.

England has to triumph by 277 runs in order to win the game. Ben Foakes, on the other hand, did a good job by sticking about with the former captain till the finish of the game. Stuart Broad deserves the credit for pulling England back into the game and putting them in a position to succeed owing to his brilliant bowling performance.

After play resumed, New Zealand was in a favorable position, but after Broad took 3 wickets, their score dropped to 251 for seven wickets. Broad was the spark for this extraordinary downfall. The tourists, who earlier had a good chance of reaching or exceeding the mark of 350 runs, were bowled out for only 285 runs. It provided England with a serious opportunity to win, and Root did a good job of holding one end regardless of the fact that the home team was suffering at 69/4 at one point.

ENG vs NZ 1st Test – It’s up to us as a group of players to do everything: Broad

When Broad was asked about his team’s prospects of taking a 1-0 edge in the three-game series, he expressed following the conclusion of play for the day. He praised Joe Root for his superb knock while also expressing his belief that Foakes has done a good job of holding on thus far. Having said that, the fast bowler further said that on Day-4 the lower-order hitters would need to assist in order for the team to be successful.

“It’s had a bit of everything. It’s up to us as a group of players to do everything we can to get over the line, and it would be very special, but if it doesn’t work that way we step up to the plate in Nottingham. But I’ve got a really good feeling about tomorrow. Joe Root is one of the calmest, England’s best-ever batsmen, and Foakesy I thought settled really nicely, and then it’s going to be up to the lower order to chase these runs, so it’s set up to be a brilliant morning,” Broad added.

It really was Stuart Broad‘s 3 wicket over there in the 84th over that had the spectators moving early on the 3rd day. He took Daryl Mitchell, Colin de Grandhomme, and Kyle Jamieson out in that over. After this, England were able to take total control of the match, and he finished the innings with the statistics of 3/76. Broad, in response to his spectacular spell, said how much he enjoys getting the audience involved and excited.

“We were a bit disappointed yesterday afternoon…they played really well for their runs. We knew we had to strike with the new ball because the Test match was riding on it. If New Zealand gets 340-350 it’s a different game. I really enjoyed the feeling of getting the crowd going, and lifting the energy in the stadium. The crowd responded brilliantly and so did the players,” the 35-year-old said.