🔗 Share this article

The English side's preparations for a warm, arid T20 World Cup in the subcontinent in February led them on midweek to a chilly, rainy Auckland, where they were forced to conduct the final practice run ahead of their third game against New Zealand inside. The purpose isn't always clear what purpose these two-team contests serve, what useful lessons could possibly be gained – but on this occasion, for at least a squad member, that is no concern.

The Batter's New Role: Starting Batsman to Lower Down

Tom Banton says he is “still learning now”, and if it is the type of statement regularly trotted out even by players who have long since scaled the pinnacle of their sport, in his situation it is certainly accurate. After forging his reputation as a top-order batter, mostly as an opener, Banton suddenly finds himself a totally new position, batting at the middle order. “I didn't have too many conversations,” he said. “I just got brought me back into the squad and told, ‘Your role will be in the middle order now.’”

Before his recall in June, 87% of Banton’s 162 professional T20 appearances had been as an opener, another 8% at third position and the remaining handful – but for a brief stint at seventh spot in a T20 Blast game previously – at fourth place. If England intend to keep him in this new position he requires every possible opportunity to become accustomed to it, and he has already worked out one thing: “Playing down the order,” he concluded, “is a lot harder than starting the innings.”

Mixed Results in the Tour

The player noted that “sometimes where it comes off and it looks great and on other occasions where it fails”, and the first two games of the tour in the host nation have seen both outcomes. In the opener, he faced nine balls and made nine runs before holing out to the deep fielder; in the second, he played 12 deliveries, hit runs, and ended the innings not out.

Thoughts on Comeback and Growth

The current series has seen Banton return to the country in which he first played for his country in late 2019. Since then, he drifted back out of the team, had a short comeback in recently and then passed a long period in the wilderness before coming back for Harry Brook’s initial match as skipper. “On the flight over, it was strange,” he said. “It was six years ago when I started internationally. Seems a lot has occurred in that time. I’ve learned a lot about myself. The few years after I was left out from the national team was a tough time for me. I had a couple of years stretch where I was working myself out.”

Backing from Team Management

Currently, he has been assigned something new to work out. Banton is grateful to have been given another chance, and also for the coach's ability to make him comfortable while he works out how best to seize the opportunity. “Baz came up to me before [the recent game] and said, ‘Head out and express yourself.’ It's reassuring to have that freedom,” Banton said. “I realize it’s just a brief comment from the staff, but it gives me the backing that if it doesn't work, it’s not a disaster. It is so small but for me it’s, ‘OK, I’ve got the backing from the head coach and I can go out and perform.’”

Shift in Location and Squad Decisions

Following the first two games of the series at the South Island ground, a stadium with expansive playing area, England finish the series on Thursday at the Auckland arena, a dual-purpose rugby and cricket ground where the straight boundary at 55m is among the most compact in the world. With changeable conditions and an new location they have abandoned their recent habit of announcing their team ahead of time while they determine if their ideal XI for this match will be the identical as the one that began the earlier fixtures.

Upcoming Changes for ODI Series

On Friday, they move to Mount Maunganui and turn focus to one-day internationals, with a slightly amended team: three players drop out, while Jofra Archer, Ben Duckett, Joe Root and Jamie Smith come in. Three of those players arrived in the city on Wednesday but the scheduling of the bowler's Test match buildup implies he will follow later, flying with Mark Wood and Josh Tongue, two seamers who are also building towards the Tests in Australia but are not in the white-ball squad. Consequently he will be absent for the opening game at Bay Oval, the ground where he was racially abused on his sole prior visit, in a few years back.