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England could, conceivably, have taken the nine wickets they needed to seal an unlikely victory had the weather not intervened most critically on the final day at Trent Bridge. India should have overhauled the remaining 157 runs they needed in that time to claim a deserved 1-0 lead in the series, despite requiring a record successful run-chase. And England would have, without doubt, been in a far better position had someone other than Joe Root done something with the bat. For all the beautiful scenarios that cricket – or sport for that matter – tends to throw up, here we are again with the series on a level footing after the drawn opener, but with both sides in possession of greater knowledge than they had a week ago, not to mention a few selection conundrums.England had rammed home what was more than an inkling during their series defeat to New Zealand that their batting line-up is out of touch, and in the absence of Ben Stokes, far too reliant on one man, Root. But England also learned that they can fight even after being considerably underdone after a lack of red-ball games. Just how sustainable that is as a strategy rather than as a fall-back in a crisis will be found out soon enough if their batters continue to fail.First-innings dismissals to excellent deliveries for Rory Burns and Jonny Bairstow aside, England’s batting left so much to be desired. No one besides Root even threatened the high-30s and Dom Sibley’s blockades of 18 off 70 and 28 off 133 bolstered his indomitable captain without providing any spark. Wholesale changes loom, some forced by injury, others by a pressing need to put runs on the board.Ollie Pope has had an extra week to recover from a quadriceps tear but may have to wait to make his return after a shake-up for the team’s balance, thanks to Stuart Broad’s calf muscle injury, a late niggle to James Anderson and the recall of an in-form Moeen Ali – England’s first sighting of spin this summer.India’s bowling attack, without R Ashwin, answered many questions; their pace attack was a highlight, led by Jasprit Bumrah’s nine wickets for the match. Ravindra Jadeja held his own with the bat, scoring fifty in the first innings while it was the middle order who struggled. Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane all failed to crack double figures but none of that senior trio is likely to make way at this stage.At Lord’s the weather is set fair, meaning what began as an enthralling contest between these sides offers a similarly gripping second chapter.Saqib Mahmood could earn a maiden Test cap at Lord’s•PA Photos/Getty Images

Form guide

(last five completed matches, most recent first)England DLDLL
India DLWWW

In the spotlight

It is 356 days since Zak Crawley’s double-century against Pakistan in Southampton. His only innings of note in the 14 he has played since has been 53, albeit in incredibly challenging batting conditions during the day-night Test against India at Ahmedabad in February. There is a sense that Crawley showed he has what it takes to make it during his knock at the Ageas Bowl nearly a year ago, and that he is a player worth persisting with for the future. However, England’s need to strengthen their batting is pressing. Dan Lawrence will make way as Jos Buttler moves up to No.6 to accommodate Ali, most likely at No. 7, but Crawley isn’t safe either. Haseeb Hameed has impressed in the nets, not to mention with his hundred against the Indians in a warm-up for this series, which hasn’t gone unnoticed given the current line-up’s struggles to support Root. Should Hameed make his first Test appearance since touring India in 2016-17, it could be at the expense of Crawley or Sibley. Crawley needs a strong showing, his time isn’t already up.Cheteshwar Pujara has gone nine Test innings without reaching fifty. His score of just 4 first-up in Nottingham didn’t help, although being 12 not out in the second innings buys time in the sense of what might have been had India had the chance to pursue their target on the fifth day. With KL Rahul finding some touch as opener, having been initially included in the touring party as a middle-order option, Pujara could be on unstable ground should Rahul drop down at any point to make way for the regular openers.

Team news

Broad faces a wait to play his 150th Test after his injury, with Mark Wood set to replace him for his first Test of the summer. Saqib Mahmood, drafted into the squad as cover, could yet make a surprise debut after Anderson missed training due to his tight quad. He impressed in the white-ball series against Pakistan, and looks set to compete with Craig Overton for the final place in the XI. Ali should slot straight in for his first home Test in two years after his impressive form in the Hundred and is likely to bat at No. 7 with England retaining Sam Curran at No. 8 in a four-man pace attack.England (possible): 1 Rory Burns, 2 Dom Sibley, 3 Zak Crawley/Haseeb Hameed, 4 Joe Root (capt.), 5 Jonny Bairstow, 6 Jos Buttler (wk), 7 Moeen Ali, 8 Sam Curran, 9 Ollie Robinson, 10 Mark Wood, 11 Craig Overton/Saqib MahmoodWith Shardul Thakur sidelined with a left hamstring injury, Ashwin looks like an automatic selection, especially in warm (by this English summer’s standards) and dry conditions. However, with some cloud cover expected, India could seek to exploit their reverse-swing options in Ishant Sharma and/or Umesh Yadav. Mohammed Siraj is expected to play, so it will likely come down to a choice between Ashwin, if India opt for two spinners, or Sharma if they want a four-pronged pace attack. Mayank Agarwal, a late withdrawal after he was concussed by a Siraj bouncer two days before the first Test, has recovered and batted in the nets this week but Rahul has snatched the opening position for the moment with 84 and 26 at Trent Bridge.India (possible): 1 Rohit Sharma, 2 KL Rahul, 3 Cheteshwar Pujuara, 4 Virat Kohli (capt), 5 Ajinkya Rahane, 6 Rishabh Pant (wk), 7 Ravindra Jadeja, 8 R Ashwin/Ishant Sharma, 9 Mohammed Shami, 10 Jasprit Bumrah, 11 Mohammed Siraj

Pitch and conditions

What they say about death and taxes also applies to rain playing a part in England home series, as we saw in the first Test. But the good news is the elusive summer of 2021 appears to be emerging with warmer, drier weather expected for the duration at Lord’s but with some cloud. The pitch looked set to be a typical bat-first proposition on match eve.

Stats and trivia

• For only the second time this century, England have failed to register a win in their first three matches of a home season – their first win of the 2014 home season came in their fifth game.
• Joe Root is 14 runs away from going past Graham Gooch’s 8900 Test runs and moving to second among the highest run-getters in Test cricket for England. He is also 113 runs short of reaching 9000 Test runs.
• If neither Broad nor Anderson play, this will be only England’s second home Test to feature neither bowler since 2007 (after the 2012 Test against West Indies in Birmingham)

Quotes

“They’ve got 1000 wickets between them, so it’s going to be potentially a bit of a loss, but with that comes opportunity for other people. We’ve seen previously in the summer, look at the Pakistan series, the opportunity arose for other people coming in to rise to those challenges”
“The good thing is Jadeja has got runs in the first game already, so he will go into the second game confident. That already makes our batting a bit deeper, the lower order contributed with the bat as well”

South Africa are relishing the opportunity to practice playing under pressure as they build towards the 2023 ODI World Cup. They currently lie in last place on the Super League points table, but have played the joint-fewest matches, and have another 21 fixtures (seven series of three matches each) to work their way up. And as a team with a reputation for buckling in big moments, South Africa don’t mind getting there the hard way.”It gives us a good opportunity to get our ducks in a row. If it means that we have to play games under pressure or with a lot of consequence then so be it. It’s not a bad thing to have to go through that type of process,” Temba Bavuma, South Africa’s captain said. “It will go a long way in strengthening our mental resolve. We’ll know, going to the World Cup, that we’ve had to overcome a lot of tough moments.”Related

• Balbirnie – 'If Ireland don't qualify, we've got no excuses'

• South Africa look for Super League points against Ireland

• Bavuma wants to be more than SA's first black African captain

So far, South Africa have lost the only series they’ve played in the World Cup Super League – 1-2 to Pakistan in March – but they had a second-string XI for the decider after several first-choice players had to leave for the IPL. Now, they have all their frontline players available and can start working on the combinations they want to use for the tournament. “Our first priority is to start racking up those points. In saying that, we want to use this opportunity to really get to terms with how we want to go about playing our ODI cricket,” Bavuma said. “The time is still there for us to try out different options and give guys the opportunities to show what they can do with the overall goal of winning series and qualifying for the World Cup.”One position that will come into sharp focus is that of the allrounder, especially as South Africa’s search for one in the post-Jacques Kallis era has been long. In West Indies, South Africa opted for a spin-bowling allrounder in George Linde and did not use a seam-bowling allrounder for the four T20Is before bringing in Wiaan Mulder for the finale.With Dwaine Pretorius not on this tour after contracting Covid-19, Mulder may get more opportunities, especially as conditions in Ireland are expected to be more friendly to seam than spin, but Bavuma suggested the focus on specialists remains. “These conditions allow for us to play an extra allrounder which will give us an extra cushion in batting, but we still want to create a situation where batters need to take ownership of what they need to do,” he said.However, South Africa are also in need of another finisher to accompany David Miller and could turn to Andile Phehlukwayo, who did not feature in the Caribbean. “I see Andile playing a big part within the Proteas. He is an integral member of our squad. He is one of the few guys with a considerable amount of games and experience behind him and a guy like that cannot be thrown to the wayside,” Bavuma said.Phehlukwayo was underused against Pakistan earlier in the year and stand-in skipper Heinrich Klaasen hinted he was low on confidence, but Bavuma has seen a different side to Phehlukwayo on this trip and expects him to be back to his best. “Confidence is such a volatile thing for all of us. There’s days when you wake up you feel on top of the world and there’s days you feel like you don’t know which end of the bat to hold. I don’t think that’s something unique to Andile,” Bavuma said. “The best thing we can do as players is to keep supporting him and trying to get his mind as clear as possible. He is in a good state. He understands a lot more what his role is in the team.”Similarly, South Africa on the whole want to ensure they maintain a level of hunger for success among the group so they don’t take an opposition like Ireland for granted on the road to the World Cup. “There is a danger of us expecting things to happen but we’ve come here to different conditions to what we are used to at home and different conditions to what we experience in West Indies. The challenge for us is to find a way to dominate and master conditions here,” Bavuma said, “If we heavily invest our energy and bring about a certain intensity to that, we will get the results we want.”

ScorecardAlastair Cook recorded his 10th List A hundred•Getty Images

Alastair Cook served up his tenth career List A century to guide Essex to their third win in three Royal London Cup matches this season.Cook paced his innings with some devastating hooks and pulls, to go with well-judged nudges, accelerating from the halfway point to reach 127 as Essex posted a formidable 315 for 8 from their 50 overs. Although Phil Mustard and Ian Cockbain laid the platform for Gloucestershire’s reply with a third-wicket stand of 95 in 15 overs, they eventually fell 29 runs short after a late clatter of wickets.Cook’s first fifty took 65 balls, his second 20 balls less, while at the same time his boundary tally went up from three for the first to six for the second. When he was finally out, he had faced 134 balls and hit 12 fours.Cook shared partnerships of 82 with Nick Browne for the first wicket, 99 with Varun Chopra for the third and 57 in six overs with Ravi Bopara for the fourth. Bopara marked his 32nd birthday with a 23-ball 37 during which he passed 9000 career List A runs, before taking three wickets to help finish Gloucestershire off.As Essex chased late runs to pass 300, left-arm seamer Chris Liddle came back to claim three wickets in his last 20 deliveries to finish with 4 for 54.Gloucestershire’s requirement started at nearly six-and-a-half an over and had hit 10 with 10 overs to go, but Mustard (90) and Cockbain (79) traded big hits before the wicketkeeper departed after slamming seven fours and two sixes. Jack Taylor also joined the party with a six in his 25-ball 34, but it was not enough as Gloucestershire lost 4 for 29 in 5.3 overs at the death.Essex were put in and Browne took the opportunity to bat himself back into form in his 40-ball 42. The left-hander survived a sharp caught-and-bowled chance to Liam Norwell before he was the first to go as he clipped Benny Howell off his legs to Michael Klinger at midwicket.Cook settled and accumulated steadily but, the ball after he reached his half-century with another single into the covers, he lost his second partner when Tom Westley chased one outside off stump from Liddle and was caught behind for 5. Cook was dropped on 67 when he pulled Norwell to the midwicket boundary where Jack Taylor not only floored the catch but helped it over the ropes.Having moved Essex from 101 for 2 to bring up 200 with Cook, Chopra took an ill-advised run to Chris Dent at mid-on on 41 and was three yards from home when the direct throw broke the wicket. Cook and Bopara then kicked on before the younger Taylor, Matt, claimed a catch low down at deep midwicket off Tom Smith to send back the allrounder.Cook followed three runs and five balls later when he drove Liddle uppishly to Kieran Noema-Barnett at extra cover. The same Gloucestershire partnership accounted for Ashar Zaidi before Ryan ten Doeschate went lbw to Howell. Simon Harmer brought up the 300 with an extravagant reverse-sweep for four before Adam Wheater was caught behind from the final ball of the innings.The Gloucestershire openers had put on 74 in 17 overs when Harmer turned one away from Klinger and Zaidi tumbled backwards in taking the catch at short third man. The batsmen had become bogged down and Dent underlined the frustration when he tried to hit Harmer over the top and found sub fielder Callum Taylor at long-off.With the required rate rising, Mustard decided to chivvy things along and pulled Harmer for six to bring up his fifty from 63 balls. Cockbain then deposited ten Doeschate for a huge six over cow corner and Mustard hit another out of the ground at midwicket to ruin Harmer’s figures, the offspinner ending with 2 for 69.The return of Matt Quinn broke the third-wicket stand when Mustard sent a leading edge high to deep extra cover, where Cook claimed it at the second attempt. Noema-Barnett didn’t last long before holing out to Taylor on the midwicket boundary, but Cockbain kept up the tempo and reached his fifty from 51 balls.Jack Taylor and Cockbain slammed straight sixes in the 42nd over, as Wagner made a costly return that leaked 21 runs and ended with Cockbain being caught off a free hit. But after helping put on 70 in nine overs, Taylor tried to hit Quinn over wide mid-off and was pouched by Harmer.Cockbain finally departed, caught at deep cover by Cook off Bopara, who then claimed the wicket of Howell, caught at short third man by Zaidi, to finish with 3 for 34. Finally Norwell went down the wicket to Zaidi and was stumped.

While Australia are still navigating their way through a calendar that sees them start a Test in India the day after a T20 at home, South Africa have scheduling challenges of their own. They will play a warm-up match in New Zealand less than 48 hours after their final ODI against Sri Lanka at Centurion and a T20 within a week of their series win. The difference between them and Australia is that South Africa are taking the same group that was on duty at home across 11 time zones to New Zealand.”It’s not ideal. Usually we have a seven to ten day period to acclimatise,” Mohammad Moosajee, South Africa’s team manager, who is also a medical doctor, said. “We will have some tricks up our sleeve to help players deal with the jet lag.”But that was as much as Moosajee would give away about how he is planning to help the players adjust. Not even the men themselves seem to know what’s in store. “We will sleep a lot on the plane I guess,” Faf du Plessis joked. “I’m not too sure but we have an amazing team doctor, so I’m sure he has got a plan.”South Africa will play a T20 and five ODIs in New Zealand, with only one change to the squad that beat Sri Lanka 5-0, and that change is only for two matches. Cobras’ quick Dane Paterson has been included as cover for Dwaine Pretorius, who will remain at home to welcome his first child, before flying over.The T20 series, in which du Plessis will captain, will not have as much emphasis placed on it as the ODIs, which form an important part of preparations for the Champions Trophy. South Africa want to be tested, not least because Sri Lanka did not present an adequate enough challenge but they also want to banish some bad memories. The last time South Africa were in New Zealand was at the 2015 World Cup and their semi-final defeat against the hosts still stings.”We have got a bit of unfinished business there form the 2015 World Cup,” AB de Villiers, ODI captain said.While a bilateral series in no way compares to a major tournament, South Africa will use the matches as a barometer to justify their newly gained No. 1 ranking. They took the spot from Australia, who have just been beaten by New Zealand, who sit third. “Being the No. 1 team in the world, people expect you to play a certain level of cricket all the time. With what we’ve got going at the moment, I think we will thrive under that kind of pressure,” de Villiers said. “We’re very positive, we have a great culture and we go there with a lot of confidence and belief in our ability.”The same can be said of the Test outfit, who will play three matches after the limited-overs fest, by which time South Africa will definitely have adjusted to the time difference – any additions to the squad would have enough time too. South Africa will fly over a fresh attack for the three Tests but they need to hope they are all fit. Vernon Philander is nursing a slight ankle impingement and Morne Morkel, who has been out of action since the CPL in mid-2016 with a back concern, will play in domestic one-day matches to determine his availability. Duanne Olivier, who has taken over 50 wickets in this season’s first-class competition, also has a good chance of playing but du Plessis hinted they may also hang on to a few players from the one-day outfit.”The only gap available in our Test team is the third seamer. Morne is coming back. I faced him the other day in the nets and he is bowling beautifully but we’ve also got guys like Chris Morris and Wayne Parnell, who have been bowling well.”Both Morris and Parnell are part of the limited-overs’ squad that depart South Africa on Saturday. On Monday, they will be in action again. No rest.

ScorecardFile photo – Aaron Finch struck a brisk 58 to push Victoria’s lead past 200•PA Photos

Victoria wicketkeeper Sam Harper was taken to hospital with a heavy concussion after he was inadvertently struck on the helmet by the bat of Jake Lehmann on day two of the Sheffield Shield match at Adelaide Oval.Lehmann was facing the spin of Jon Holland shortly before lunch when he tried to swat a short ball to the leg side and struck Harper as his bat followed through.Harper fell to the ground and was in considerable distress as he was treated by medical staff on the field of play. An early lunch break was called after he was assisted from the field and the resumption was delayed as several players were notably upset by the sight of Harper’s struggles, included dry-retching and issues with balance.”Harper was examined at Adelaide Oval by medical staff before being transferred to hospital for further assessment and treatment,” a Cricket Victoria spokesman said. “Harper underwent scans this afternoon which have not identified any bleeding or bone damage, but he will remain in hospital overnight for observation.”Under the Sheffield Shield playing conditions, replacement players are not permitted. In the event that a player is replaced, the match risks forfeiting First-Class status. Harper has been ruled out of the remainder of the match and Victorian Seb Gotch will travel to Adelaide to act as a substitute fielder.”Harper is the second Victoria player to be ruled out with concussion in as many matches, after the debutant Will Pucovski was struck by the ball during the previous fixture against New South Wales at the MCG. Pucovski, who has a history of concussion, is yet to resume training.Victoria, meanwhile, dominated day two despite Lehmann’s innings of 92, bowling the Redbacks out for 178 in reply to 184 before the visitors built their lead in the evening session. An unbeaten 58 from Aaron Finch carried Victoria to 4 for 198 at stumps, a lead of 204.

Lauren Winfield, the England opening batsman, has cut short her holiday in Australia to replace Deandra Dottin in Brisbane Heat’s WBBL squad.Dottin, the West Indies allrounder who helped to secure the Women’s World T20 title last year, suffered multiple cheekbone fractures after an on-field collision with team-mate Laura Harris during the Heat’s match against Melbourne Stars on December 28.She remains an outside bet to return to the competition at a later date, after insisting “all is going to be fine!” in a post on Facebook.”Eye socket and eyesight is fine, jaw and teeth fine,” Dottin wrote. “I am out of hospital now, recovering before a specialist appointment with a face surgeon Thursday. At this stage it is believed I will require titanium plates to fix the issues.”Winfield, who captains Yorkshire Diamonds in the Kia Super League and can also keep wicket, had been travelling in Australia when she received the call-up.She averages 23.76 in 18 Twenty20 international matches for England, at a strike rate of 112, but shot to prominence last summer with an ODI innings of 123 from 117 balls – and an opening stand of 235 with Tammy Beaumont – against Pakistan at Worcester.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details4:00

Chappell: Dropped catch cost Pakistan dearly

It is hard enough for touring teams at the Gabba without providing instances of charity to the hosts. On a night when floodlights and the pink ball ushered in Brisbane’s biggest ever non-Ashes Test crowd, Pakistan allowed the throng of 26,343 to salute a century for Australia’s captain Steven Smith with a pair of contrasting reprieves.The first, in the final over before the tea break, came via an unexpectedly sharp leg break from Azhar Ali and an equally surprising fumble behind the stumps by Sarfraz Ahmed. Several hours later and Mohammad Amir fizzed the second new ball across Smith to coax the thinnest of edges. This time Sarfraz took it crisply – yet it was a nick so fine no appeal was made.The fact Amir took the second new ball at all felt almost as remarkable as his return to the Pakistan side from an infamous jail sentence. Having bowled tidily early, his right knee had plugged in the Gabba outfield and seemed to have suffered an injury akin to that inflicted on Simon Jones in 2002. Yet Amir found a way to return, in a show of resilience Pakistan must now emulate collectively in order to find a way back into this first innings.Smith’s innings was the centrepiece of Australia’s day, equal parts patient and punchy, but it would not have been possible without a pair of tremendous supporting hands from the young batsmen Matt Renshaw and Pete Handscomb. Renshaw’s discipline in early stands with David Warner and then Smith blunted the new ball in the hands of Pakistan’s pace attack and also compelled Yasir Shah to bowl a high volume of overs early in the match.While Wahab Riaz was able to find Renshaw’s outside edge before he could go on to three figures, Smith and Handscomb then fought their way through to the whole final session with hope for more runs on resumption. Handscomb did not always look comfortable but fought his way through, at the same time showing no desire to depart from the batting methods that have served him well at domestic level.Renshaw played an exemplary innings, showing his usual sound judgment around the off stump but also showing an ability to hit with power through midwicket and down the ground. In doing so he invited further comparisons with another tall Queensland opening batsman in Matthew Hayden – Australia’s selectors will dream of more such performances.There had been some swing for Amir and Rahat Ali in the early overs, but Renshaw and Warner did very well to cover any movement and also punish any errors in line or length – in Warner’s case he started by punching Rahat to the cover fence first ball. Wahab’s greater pace was unable to make much of an impression, and Misbah was left to call on Yasir as early as the 11th over of the innings.Matt Renshaw scored most of his runs through mid-on and midwicket•Cricket Australia/Getty Images

Bounce was plentiful even if the Gabba pitch will likely quicken up in pace on day two, but Yasir’s early overs were characterised by a somewhat odd tactic – attacking the leg stumps of Renshaw and Warner with a 6-3 leg side field. For the most part the batsmen took advantage of this, the only semblance of a chance coming when Yasir strayed wide of the off stump and Warner edged fractionally short of slip.However Amir was brought back in the lead-up to the break and was able to pin Warner as he shuffled across the stumps to try to work the ball to the leg side. Gould’s finger was raised and Warner did not review; ball-tracking showed the ball would have clipped the outside of the leg stump.Khawaja got started with one neat leg glance, but he was soon to be on his way when he lifted a Yasir delivery on the pads directly into the midriff of Misbah. Renshaw finished the session with a boundary from Azhar, before finding more gaps when play resumed – leaping out once to flay Yasir over cover.Smith also played admirably straight, refusing to be tempted into a surfeit of deliveries angled across him by the Pakistani left-armers, and the pair were looking increasingly secure until Wahab found a modicum of away movement to coax an edge from Renshaw’s bat.Coming in at No. 5, Handscomb again demonstrated his idiosyncrasies, staying deep in his crease to the pacemen while also trying to dance down the wicket to Yasir. There were a few nervy moments for him before the break, but Smith’s passing of 50 gave the hosts some cause for optimism as the match crept into the floodlit night.Intriguingly Misbah resumed with twin spin after dinner, and Smith and Handscomb were duly able to get back into rhythm. The genuine concern for Amir left the tourists a bowler short, with Rahat also looking sluggish at various points. The second new ball brought Amir’s welcome return and the aforementioned unappealing edge from Smith, and after a protracted period in the 90s, the Australian captain was able to drive down the ground for Test hundred No. 16.Of all the surprises thrown up by the first night’s pink ball cricket in Brisbane, a wicketless final session was surely the most startling. No-one will be more grateful for that than the No. 6 Nic Maddinson, who can now look forward to batting in sunlight on day two – whenever Smith and Handscomb exit the stage that is.

Pitch prediction sometimes brings to mind the reading of palms or tea leaves.In the days before a Test, coaches and captains take familiar positions near one end of the track and stare pensively down at the clay; silently nodding or shaking heads, or murmuring softly under their breath. They drop ritualistically, to their haunches to lay hands on the surface, sometimes feeling it with closed eyes, as if searching for the pitch’s life force. Towards the end of the exercise, glances are often thrown skywards and divine guidance is sought. Occasionally, the pitch curator consulted.Members of both teams observed this tradition, at Seddon Park, on Tuesday, and if they were especially intense during the examination, it is because the Hamilton pitch has had many avatars in recent years. It bounced for Sri Lanka last December, when even a visiting seamer prospered with the short ball, and Sri Lanka’s top order treated the crowd to an unforgettable slapstick collapse. In 2013 it had sung for offspinner Sunil Narine, who took 6 for 91 in the first innings. In the two Tests before that, reverse-swing had defined the outcome. All the way back in 2010, when Australia came, pace and seam movement had proved significant.Pakistan say they are happy to play on any track, but two days out, this track is just as green as the one at Hagley Oval had been. And although it was a warm, cloudless day, Seddon Park’s curators also kept the surface covered for much of the afternoon. Much of the grass will be retained – all the better to mute Pakistan’s spinner, said New Zealand wicketkeeper-batsman BJ Watling, who also plays on this surface for the Northern Districts domestic side.”A lot can depend on the cloud cover we get here when conditions are around,” he said. “It can swing when it’s overcast. I’m hoping it doesn’t spin too much because Yasir Shah is a world-class bowler, and we really don’t want to bring him into the game too much.”In addition to aiding swing, the cloud cover and rain expected for the first three days of the match may also prevent the track from drying out as much as Pakistan and Yasir would like. The forecast has improved through the week, however, and Watling suggested that even a little sunshine could change the pitch’s character.Todd Astle will likely lose his spot to Mitchell Santner, who has recovered from a fractured wrist•AFP

“Our pitches here can flatten out quite quickly. If it’s green on day one, I can guarantee that by the end of day two, if it stays sunny, it won’t be that green anymore.”If the pitch does turn out seam-friendly again, the visiting quicks had shown competence in such conditions – particularly on the third morning of the first Test, when the claimed six wickets for 96. Their success had largely come from bowling shorter lengths than they had initially ventured, the previous day.”Their bowlers are very good, and conditions like these can suit them,” Watling said. “They would have learned from that last match and will adjust their lengths accordingly. They would have learned a lot with the bat as well and we can expect a tougher challenge in this game.”New Zealand are likely to retain the quicks that played in Christchurch, but will likely swap Mitchell Santner for Todd Astle in the XI. Watling said the hosts’ attack is varied enough to be menacing, even if the ball does not move for as long as expected.”We know we always have Neil Wagner, who when conditions flatten out, can change a game and give you those couple of crucial wickets to bring our swing bowlers back into the game as well. We’ve got a good balance there. With Colin bowling quite a few overs for us as the allrounder, I think it really helps Kane.”

Spinners R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja, and fast bowler Mohammed Shami, have been rested once again as India named an unchanged 14-man squad for the remaining two ODIs against New Zealand. The three bowlers had been left out of the squad for the first three ODIs too, keeping in mind a heavy Test schedule in the 2016-17 home season.Batsman Suresh Raina was not included in the squad because he was yet to regain full fitness after an illness. Raina had made a comeback to the ODI squad for the New Zealand series but was unable to play any of the first three games.Ashwin, Jadeja and Shami played all three Tests in India’s 3-0 sweep of New Zealand, bowling 146.3, 144 and 75.1 overs respectively. India have a five-Test series coming up against England in November and December, a one-off Test against Bangladesh, and then a four-Test series against Australia in February and March 2017.India lead the five-ODI series against New Zealand 2-1 after winning the third match in Mohali by seven wickets. The fourth game is in Ranchi on October 26.Squad: MS Dhoni (capt & wk), Rohit Sharma, Ajinkya Rahane, Virat Kohli, Manish Pandey, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Jayant Yadav, Amit Mishra, Jasprit Bumrah, Dhawal Kulkarni, Umesh Yadav, Mandeep Singh, Kedar Jadhav

England 293 and 228 for 8 (Stokes 85, Bairstow 47, Shakib 5-79) lead Bangladesh 248 (Tamim 78, Mushfiqur 48, Stokes 4-26) by 273 runs
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsBen Stokes produced a day of all-round dominance to rival anything produced by an England player in the subcontinent, to drag his side – wicket by wicket, run by run – into the ascendancy in a thrilling first Test against Bangladesh at Chittagong.With four crucial wickets in a supreme display of reverse-swing bowling in Bangladesh’s first innings, followed by a technically formidable 85 from 151 balls in England’s second, Stokes twice hauled England back from the point of no return, and in so doing, sapped the spirit of a Bangladesh side that had made much of the running in the first two days of the contest.By the close, England had recovered from a ropey 64 for 5 in their second innings to reach the close on 228 for 8 – an overall lead of 273 – with Stuart Broad and Chris Woakes once again demonstrating the depth of England’s batting resources in a comfortable ninth-wicket stand. However, with the second new ball looming within four overs of the resumption, the vagaries of the pitch are sure to be revealed once again when Bangladesh’s spinners are armed with a hard new cherry, which in turn will reaffirm the magnificence of Stokes’ performance.The ball was in its 19th over when Stokes began his vigil, with men around the bat and England in some strife after the loss of four wickets for 20 runs in the space of ten overs either side of lunch. But, in a doughty display of patience and controlled aggression, Stokes demonstrated both maturity and the fruits of his own hard graft in the nets, as he played largely off the back foot to give himself time to react to whatever came his way.Aside from one early sweep for six over square leg off Taijul Islam, it wasn’t until the final session that Stokes unfurled his more belligerent strokes, as he began to warm to the lessening bite of the spinners to crunch six fours and two more sixes in a stay that spanned 46 overs. The second of his sixes, again off Taijul, was hoisted high over midwicket to bring up a 102-ball fifty.Jonny Bairstow was his principal ally in a sixth-wicket stand of 127, during which time Bairstow went past Andy Flower’s record for the most runs by a wicketkeeper in a calendar year. He finally chopped on for 47 to give Kamrul Islam Rabbi his maiden Test wicket – a rare success for Bangladesh’s seamers who contributed 11 overs all told and none before the 40th over – and Stokes followed three overs later to give Shakib Al Hasan the fourth wicket of a fighting haul of 5 for 79.However, as Stokes departed to huge acclaim from his team-mates, it was clear that he had already carried the destiny of this match beyond any reasonable doubt. Bangladesh cannot be entirely ruled out, of course, but in what is already a stiff fourth-innings requirement, it will require a performance of at least equal skill and resolve if they are to secure a win that would surely count as their greatest Test victory.To devalue Stokes’ efforts by commenting on the identity of his opponents would do a disservice to both parties. Bangladesh may have lost all eight of their previous Tests against England, but much like Sri Lanka in the early 1990s, there comes a point when past history counts for little and teams deserve to be judged on the here and now.Ben Stokes followed his wickets with a vital innings•AFP

And for two days of absorbing, and very traditional, subcontinental cricket, it had been Bangladesh putting in all of the inspirational performances – from Mehedi Hasan’s six-wicket debut, to Tamim Iqbal’s cool-headed 78. England started the third day with a lead of 73 and five Bangladesh wickets still to claim, no easy task given the listlessness of their spinners when armed with the soft old ball. It was clear that a lead of any description on this surface would be critical to either side, so Stokes made it his duty to be the man that England needed.Their day did, however, begin with a gift-wrapped opening wicket. His later wickets atoned for the misjudgement to a degree but, as their last remaining senior batsman, Shakib’s decision to gallop down the pitch to Moeen Ali’s second delivery of the morning was an aberration. He was stumped by three yards to depart for 31, and when the nightwatchman Shafiul Islam slogged an Adil Rashid legbreak to mid-on for 2, the door was flapping open for Stokes to kick through the tail.He had already made arguably the key incision of the match by extracting Mushfiqur Rahim for 48 on the second evening and, with the ball moving both ways seemingly at will, from over and round the wicket, Stokes was threatening left- and right-handers alike on both sides of the bat – as well as flush on the helmet, when he pinned the debutant Sabbir Rahman with a pinpoint bouncer. By the time he plucked out Rabbi’s off stump with a perfect inswinger, he had completed innings figures of 4 for 26 in 14 overs, including 4 for 10 in his last ten.By lunch, however, the pricelessness of England’s 45-run lead had become all too apparent, as Bangladesh’s spinners once again surged to the fore, armed with the hard new ball that seemed at times to detonate from the crumbling surface. In the space of eight deliveries, England lost both of their most acclaimed players of spin, as Alastair Cook was lured into a poke to slip off Mehedi before Joe Root – always eager to rotate the strike – dropped to one knee and was pinned lbw by Shakib. And right on the stroke of lunch, England lost their third wicket for two runs in the space of 20 balls, as Ben Duckett lobbed a simple chance off Shakib to short leg.Stokes’ appearance followed soon after the resumption when Gary Ballance, who had never looked comfortable as Bangladesh cramped his pads with a tight leg-stump line, swept firmly into Imrul Kayes’ midriff at leg slip for 9, and though Moeen survived his sixth TV referral of the match after a catch to short leg had been deflected off the fielder’s helmet, he too fell on the sweep to leave the fate of the game hanging on England’s redoubtable middle order. Not for the first time in recent months, they responded to the challenge.