Joe Root unbeaten as England bowlers bring New Zealand to its knees

Ben Stokes has given up warm-up cricket, pared back his training sessions and, in response to a chronic left knee problem that might have prompted a break earlier on in his career, the all-rounder has cut his bowling to moments of absolute necessity.This is not to say Stokes is not putting in. Far from it. It is just that the less the England captain pays heed to the demands of maintaining his personal output, the more this team appear to take on some of the unquantifiable aspects of his cricket; the aura, the golden arm, and that unrelenting forward momentum.

It may be that Australia, once freed from the tumultuous spin-cycle they are currently experiencing in India, find a way to push back this summer. But much like Pakistan before Christmas, New Zealand have found this collective residual glow overwhelming on home soil, with days like the second in Wellington - one where 12 wickets fell and England took a vice-like grip on proceedings - a case in point.For the second time in the series Stokes pulled the plug on England’s first innings. At the Basin, much like the Mount, this meant the hosts heading down the gurgler. Staring at 435 for eight declared, once Joe Root had been allowed to reach an unbeaten 153 that followed Harry Brook’s incendiary 186, New Zealand crumbled to 138 for seven before rain once again cut short the final session. Not all of it was about the unquantifiable. After classily shutting down one end on day one, as Brook ransacked the bowlers at the other, Root was impishly inventive on the second morning. And Jimmy Anderson, back in the city where his career truly took off in 2008, was immaculate when taking three wickets with the new ball. The best captains tend to have the best players at their