England Fall Despite Brook’s Brilliance as Mitchell Guides New Zealand Home

Harry Brook played one of the great lone hands in modern ODI cricket. England still lost. New Zealand stayed calm, stayed clear, and chased down 224 with 13.2 overs to spare in Mount Maunganui. The scorecard will mark it as a routine four-wicket win. It was chaos at the start, courage in the middle, and control at the finish.

New Zealand won the toss. Mitchell Santner looked at the pitch, felt the breeze, and made the obvious call of bowl first. The surface had grass. It had bad intentions for batters. England walked in and was ambushed before they could blink.

Jamie Smith faced the first ball of the match. Matt Henry didn’t give him time to think. Seamed away. Off stump flattened. Duck. First ball.

Then came Zak Foulkes, the young, quick with heavy shoulders, and no fear. He trapped Ben Duckett on the front pad for 2. Next ball, he went wider, fuller, and drew Joe Root into a fatal poke. Edge. Gone for 2. Root walked off in silence. England were 4 for 2. It felt worse.

New Zealand stayed relentless. They hunted in good areas. Jacob Bethell flashed and nicked. Buttler sliced a loose drive. Sam Curran pulled straight to midwicket. By the 12th over, England were 56 for 6. Game slipping. Pride threatened. The run rate was low. It turned into survival.

Then came Harry Brook. He refused to fold and backed his right to take the game back.

Jamie Overton joined him and did the one thing England needed: to stay. The partnership grew past 50. Then 70. Then 80. New Zealand backed off a step. The crowd turned down a notch. Something unusual was brewing.

Then came the moment no one will forget. Brook on 86. Jacob Duffy is running in. Three balls. Three sixes. Back-to-back. Century. He didn’t celebrate wildly. No roar. No leap. Just a nod.

He punished pace and spin. He took England from humiliation to hope. From collapse to a contest. He fell as the last man out for 135 off 101 balls, including 9 fours and 11 sixes. The highest percentage of runs ever scored by an England batter in a completed ODI innings. One man against the storm.

England all out: 223 in 35.2 overs. Too small? Probably. Impossible? Not with early wickets.

Brydon Carse took the ball and returned the favour. He struck early and got Will Young edged behind. Then came the moment he will replay for years, Kane Williamson. Golden duck. Seed outside off. Edge taken. 

Luke Wood followed by removing Rachin Ravindra. New Zealand slumped to 24 for 3. The game was still alive. Tom Latham fought back but nicked one he had to leave. Carse had his third. 66 for 4. Then came Daryl Mitchell, who ignored all of it.

Mitchell read the situation better than anyone. He didn’t swing wildly. He didn’t freeze. Michael Bracewell joined him and matched the tempo. Their 92-run stand was not flashy. Bracewell fell to a run-out after reaching fifty. Mitchell Santner walked in, tapped gloves, and carried on ticking. Singles. Twos. Pressure gone. Mitchell finished it himself on 78* off 92 balls.

New Zealand: 224/6 in 36.4 overs.

The verdict

England had a fight but no foundation. New Zealand had collapsed but found calm. Brook lit a fire. Mitchell put it out.

Cricket rarely gives solos their due. Brook gave everything. Mitchell took the win. Watch this exciting England vs NZ series live on tapmad, and enjoy every boundary, wicket, and some exciting moments in the match.