High-flying England created history after thrashing New Zealand by seven wickets on Monday in the third and final Test of the series.
England finished the series against New Zealand in style by chasing down 296 without much trouble. With the win, the hosts clean swept the three-match series against the reigning World Test Champions.
For the third time in a row in the series, the Ben Stokes-led side had to chase in the fourth innings and for the third time in row, they chased it down in style. England lost only three wickets as they chased down 296 on day five of the Test,
The chase did not begin on a good note for the hosts as their openers departed cheaply. While Alex Lees scored 9, Zak Crawley departed for 25 to leave their side reeling at 51 for 2. But from thereon, it was a one-way traffic as England thoroughly dominated the chase.
Ollie Pope, Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow hit cracking fifties to seal another memorable win for their side. Root top-scored for his side with 86 while Pope scored 82. Bairstow, on the other hand, continued his red-hot form with the bat and scored a 30-ball half-century. He remained unbeaten on 71 off just 44 balls.
England create history after winning third Test:
Thanks to the win in the third and final Test, England not only swept the three-match series but also created history. They become the first-ever side in 146 years of Test cricket to chase over 250 three times in a series.
The hosts chased down 277 at Lord’s, 299 at Trent Bridge and 296 at Headingley. In the process, they achieved the 12th-highest, fifth-highest and seventh-highest successful fourth-innings chases in their history.
England showed aggressive approach throughout the series and the series run-rate is a proof of that. The home side scored at a stunning run-rate of 4.54 during the series. Prior to this, they had scored more quickly in a Test series only once when they scored at 5.13 during the two-match series against Bangladesh in 2005.
