Sublime Root century and Pope ton puts New Zealand to the sword

Joe Root struck a magnificent, unbeaten 163 as England batted New Zealand into the dirt, reducing the visiting side's lead to 80 by stumps on day three of the second LV= Insurance Test at Trent Bridge.

Root's ton, his 27th in Test cricket and quickest, came up off 116 balls, while Ollie Pope (145) too went through to three figures, notching his highest score in Test cricket and first batting at No 3.

Alex Lees (67) also impressed, but the opener will be disappointed after not cashing in further on a flat deck following his maiden Test fifty, and Ben Stokes blasted 46 off 33 balls late on as England closed on 473-5 in their first innings.

Root and Pope's superb 187-run partnership was no doubt the highlight of the day, with New Zealand's wearied attack particularly put to the sword in an afternoon session that yielded 136 of those runs in only 28 overs.

Pope had been overshadowed somewhat in the morning, starved of the strike as he added only 33 to his overnight score from the 104 total runs made before lunch. Lees peppered the cover boundary with regularity to race though to his half century, before a change in angle - Matt Henry (1-128) from over the wicket - brought the edge through to Daryl Mitchell at first slip, who this time made no mistake after putting down two on Saturday.

Root, coming to the crease with 100 runs on the board for only the third time in his last 45 innings, got off the mark with a clipped two first ball and then fired the first of his 25 boundaries through the covers not long after - a sumptuous drive that was to be a feature of his fine innings.

Root served up one half-chance when on 27 in the last over before lunch, flashing an attempted cut off Trent Boult through the hands of Tim Southee at