New Zealand’s Mitchell and Blundell hold up England’s charge in Third Test

They have been accustomed to freak cricketing occurrences in this part of the world but as the spectators filtered out after an engrossing first day of this third Test between England and New Zealand, a good number were no doubt still computing one of the five dismissals they had witnessed.

The tourists had closed on 225 for five from – shock – 90 overs as Daryl Mitchell continued a personally golden series with an unbeaten 78 from 159 balls. But it was the right-hander’s role in the demise of Henry Nicholls on the stroke of tea which had folks rubbing their eyes in disbelief and Jack Leach, whose career has been pockmarked with misfortune, wondering whether his own worm had possibly turned.

New Zealand were 123 for four, with Nicholls having battled his way to 19 with just one more over to negotiate before a break, when Ben Stokes brought his field up to encourage the big shot. His mark couldn’t resist. But despite Nicholls seemingly getting enough on a thunderous straight drive, the ball ricocheted off the bat of Mitchell at the non-striker’s end and popped the simplest of catches to Alex Lees at mid-off.

England could scarcely believe their luck, while New Zealand were at least equipped to deal with their lack of it. Having lost the World Cup final in 2019 in part down to that famous rogue deflection off Stokes’s bat, this was almost de rigueur. Mitchell had the form and confidence to reach stumps, bringing up his half-century after tea with a booming six off Leach and forging another steadfast alliance with Tom Blundell that added 102 runs unbroken and saw the latter reach 45 not out.

Stokes had some regrets. He lost two reviews and failed to send an lbw against Mitchell upstairs when he was on eight; it was shown by