Daryl Mitchell of New Zealand took an out-of-this-world catch in slips to get rid of Joe Root in the ongoing second Test between New Zealand and England at Wellington on December 6, 2024.
Black Caps captain Tom Latham won the toss at the Basin Reserve and elected to bowl first. Matt Henry, a New Zealand pacer, dismissed Ben Duckett for a duck in the fourth over. Henry then dismissed Zak Crawley (17 off 23), putting England at 21/2 after 7.1 overs.
Harry Brook, who made 171 in the first Test at the Hagley Oval in Christchurch, hit his seventh Test century in the first innings of the second match. He shared a key 174-run stand with Ollie Pope, who made 66 runs off 78 balls, as England recovered from a 43-4 deficit.
However, England’s bottom order crumbled following Brook’s departure. Brook made 123 runs off 115 balls, including 11 fours and five sixes. England lost their last four wickets for just 21 runs and were bowled out for 280 in only 54.4 overs.
Daryl Mitchell’s stunning catch of Joe Root in slips stands out
Nathan Smith dismissed Joe Root in the eleventh over of England’s first innings. Joe Root attempted to steer a back-of-length ball to third man, but he edged it. Daryl Mitchell, who was stationed at the first slip, grabbed the ball with one hand while diving to the right. Root scored only three runs off seven deliveries.
This was Nathan Smith’s second dismissal of Root in the Test series. The former England captain was removed for a duck in the first innings of the first Test. Notably, Joe Root has scored three successive single-digit runs in the opening innings for the first time in his Test career.
Here is the video:
What a catch this was from Daryl Mitchell 👏
New Zealand with another wicket over England 📈
📺 Watch #NZvENG with TNT Sports and discovery+ pic.twitter.com/ZEOUPbZnPE
— Cricket on TNT Sports (@cricketontnt) December 5, 2024
New Zealand crumbles at the end of the day’s play
However, the hosts batters couldn’t gain advantage as New Zealand ended day one on 86/5, still 194 runs behind England’s total. Kane Williamson fell for 37 runs, while Latham (17) and Devon Conway (11) got starts but couldn’t do much. Brydon Carse picked two wickets, while Ben Stokes, Gus Atkinson, and Chris Woakes picked one scalp each.
Will O’Rourke and Tom Blundell will resume the Kiwi innings tomorrow on day two.
Also Read: ICC Announces 3 Nominees For ‘Player Of The Month’ Award; Indian Pacer Rewarded