Tickner rocks England on sensational return to international cricket as New Zealand win the series with ease.
Tickner makes sparkling international return to lead New Zealand to series win.
In the second ODI at Seddon Park, New Zealand destroyed their opponents by five wickets to secure a clinical series victory over England with one game remaining.
Similar to the first ODI, the hosts dismissed their opponents for 175 as a routine. In a similar effort, Rachin Ravindra’s 54 helped break the back of a manageable chase, and Daryl Mitchell led them with 56 not out to go with his 78 not out in Mount Manganui on Saturday. Mitchell Santner, the captain of New Zealand, blasted an undefeated 34 from 17 to further emphasise their supremacy.
Blair Tickner, who made a happy comeback to international cricket with 4 for 34, was the real winner of the spoils. Following a two-year hiatus from the team, Tickner has achieved career-best numbers in the format. Initially draughted into the squad to replace Kyle Jamieson, his absence from the game was directly related to Matt Henry’s left calf issue.
Following his wife Sarah’s leukaemia diagnosis, the period between his 34th and this 35th international cap has been extremely taxing. She is currently in remission even though she is still receiving chemotherapy. For the 32-year-old Quick, every day is a blessing, and Wednesday was no exception.
It was quite the opposite for England. They were put in and taken out with little trouble for the second time in five days; the first ODI’s 223 in Mount Maunganui was surpassed by a significantly less successful performance in Hamilton. In their previous sixteen attempts to set a total, they had been bowled out ten times.
Harry Brook was unable to save them this time. With England 51 for 3 at the conclusion of the 12th over, England’s limited overs skipper found himself at the crease. He finally fell for 34, 101 short of what he managed in the series opener. The star here was Jamie Overton, who hit 42 off 28 and was the only other visiting hitter to reach six at that time.
With an Ashes card full of runners and riders, a string of batting errors might have more serious repercussions. More than three weeks remain till the first Test in Perth.
The sole bright spot was Jofra Archer, who took 3 for 23 from his ten overs on his first appearance of the winter and his first ODI match against New Zealand since the 2019 World Cup final. Among them were four maidens, one of whom was a wicket maiden in the chase’s first over. He appeared to be in excellent shape and threatened both sides of the bat while operating at about 90 mph the entire time. It might not have been in vain if there were more runs available.