England tend to push a coach out the dressing room door after a blowout with the bat and on the second day in Hamilton, with control of the third Test having been seized by New Zealand, this dubious honour fell to Paul Collingwood.
There was not much Collingwood could say to ease the mood after England’s collapse to 143 all out, although Brendon McCullum’s assistant did his best. As well as insisting complacency was not an issue, there was high praise for Will O’Rourke, whose stellar burst of three wickets in eight balls wiped out Jacob Bethell, Joe Root and Harry Brook.
“I think we’ve been outperformed here, simple as that,” said Collingwood. “Of course the lads were disappointed, it wasn’t our best day, but one thing I would say is we witnessed something pretty special out there, a really hostile spell of Test bowling.
“I’m glad I wasn’t the one out there facing it because you don’t see those kind of spells every day. Sometimes you have to take your hat off, he was a real standout for them. To get three wickets during that spell has really broken us open.”
Arguably the greatest head-scratcher for an England team that have already claimed the series win with a Test to spare is Zak Crawley. This was the fifth time in five innings the opener has succumbed cheaply to Matt Henry – caught and bowled for 21 – and it is now 27 innings since the last of Crawley’s four Test centuries.
Albeit that particular innings – a brutal 189 at Old Trafford during the 2023 Ashes – is the upside that a gambler such as McCullum fancies could yet make a telling return when England and Australia lock horns next winter. Crawley, who suffered a broken finger in the summer and is yet to return to the slips, is apparently set to fire.
Collingwood said: “I think he’s had a struggle with Henry in particular. He’s caused him problems. I know myself, it’s awful. You’re not just thinking about it when you’re waiting to go and bat, you’re thinking about it away from the game. But the team will get around Zak and find ways to take his mind off something like that.
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“The way he’s playing in the nets, he’s hitting the ball really well, he’s just finding ways of getting out. With Zak, we’re not asking him to be consistent, it’s about match-winning moments. We know with Zak that once he gets in he can hurt teams. And I’m telling you, he’s ready to hurt someone.”
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