🔗 Share this article

The English side's preparations for a hot, dry T20 World Cup in the subcontinent in February brought them on midweek to a chilly, rainy Auckland, where they were compelled to conduct the final practice run ahead of their next match against New Zealand indoors. The purpose isn't always clear what role these bilateral series serve, what useful lessons could possibly be gained – but on this instance, for at least one of the players, that is not an issue.

Tom Banton's Changed Position: From Opener to Middle Order

Tom Banton says he is “still learning now”, and if it is the kind of line regularly trotted out even by players who have already reached the pinnacle of their game, in his case it is certainly accurate. After building his name as a frontline hitter, mostly as an opener, Banton suddenly finds himself a completely unfamiliar role, coming in at five or six. “I didn't have too many discussions,” he said. “I just got brought me back into the team and told, ‘You’re going to bat in the lower batting lineup now.’”

Prior to returning in the summer, 87% of Banton’s 162 professional T20 appearances had been as an opener, a further portion at No3 and the remaining handful – but for a brief stint at seventh spot in a domestic T20 game eight years ago – at No 4. If the team intend to keep him in this altered role he needs every chance to get used to it, and he has already worked out a key point: “Batting in the middle order,” he surmised, “is a lot harder than starting the innings.”

Mixed Results in the Tour

Banton said that “sometimes where it works well and it looks great and other times where it doesn’t”, and the initial matches of the winter in New Zealand have seen one of each. In the first, he faced a few deliveries and scored nine runs before getting out to long-on; in the second, he faced 12 deliveries, hit runs, and finished unbeaten.

Reflections on Return and Development

This tour has seen Banton return to the nation in which he first played for his country in November 2019. Since then, he drifted back out of the team, made a brief return in recently and then passed a long period in the sidelines before coming back for Harry Brook’s first T20 as England captain. “During the journey, it was strange,” he said. “Time has passed when I made my debut. It feels like a lot has occurred in that time. I’ve learned a lot about myself. The few years after I got dropped from England was a tough time for me. I had a two- to three-year stretch where I was working myself out.”

Support from Coaching Staff

Currently, he has been assigned a fresh challenge to tackle. Banton is thankful to have been given another chance, and also for the coach's skill to make him comfortable while he figures out how best to grasp it. “The coach approached me before [the recent game] and said, ‘Go out and play your natural game.’ It's reassuring to have that freedom,” Banton said. “I know it’s just a brief comment someone says, but it provides the support that if it doesn't work, it’s not the end of the world. It is so minor but for me it’s, ‘OK, I’ve got the backing from the manager and I can step up and perform.’”

Venue Change and Team Selection

After playing the first two games of the contest at the South Island ground, a venue with expansive playing area, England finish the series on the next day at the Auckland arena, a dual-purpose sports facility where the straight boundary at a short distance is among the shortest in the sport. With uncertain weather and an unfamiliar venue they have abandoned their recent habit of announcing their lineup two days in advance while they work out if their preferred team here will be the same as the side that began both previous games.

Upcoming Changes for ODI Series

On Friday, they travel to the coastal town and turn focus to ODIs, with a somewhat changed team: Jordan Cox, Zak Crawley and Phil Salt drop out, while Jofra Archer, Ben Duckett, Joe Root and Jamie Smith come in. Most newcomers landed in the city on Wednesday but the timing of Archer’s Test match buildup implies he will follow later, flying with two fellow bowlers, two seamers who are also preparing for the Tests in the away series but are excluded from the limited-overs team. As a result Archer will miss the first match at Bay Oval, the stadium where he was subjected to abuse on his only previous appearance, in 2019.