14 June,2021 06:43 AM IST | Birmingham | AFP
Tom Latham (centre) holds the trophy as New Zealand celebrate win over England at Edgbaston in Birmingham yesterday. Pics/Getty Images
New Zealand overpowered England by eight wickets in the second Test at Edgbaston on Sunday as they sealed a 1-0 series win with more than a day to spare. Set a target of just 38 after England tailender Olly Stone was out to the very first ball of the fourth day, the Blackcaps finished on 41-2.
Tom Latham, captaining the team in place of the injured Kane Williamson, hit the winning boundary to be 23 not out after the first Test of a two-match series at Lord's last week ended in a draw.
Victory gave New Zealand just a third win in 18 Test series in England, and a first this century after their 1986 and 1999 triumphs.
And it means they will head into next week's inaugural World Test Championship final against India at Southampton in confident mood. "It's great to get an extra day of rest before India but we'll celebrate as well - we've not won here since 1999 so it's important to celebrate those achievements," said Latham at the presentation ceremony. By contrast, this was England's first series loss at home since a 2014 defeat by Sri Lanka.
"It hasn't been our best week, has it?" England captain Joe Root told BBC Radio after his side came into this match missing Ollie Robinson, with the Sussex seamer suspended after a promising on-field Test debut at Lord's for historic racist and sexist Twitter posts. "I think we've massively underperformed. Credit to New Zealand, they have outperformed us throughout the game."
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