England vs New Zealand, 3rd Test, Stats Review: Jonny Bairstow’s feat, Daryl Mitchell's record, and other stats

England began their new era in Test cricket in spectacular fashion as they defeated the World Test Champions New Zealand by seven wickets in the third and final Test to whitewash the Kiwis 3-0. The English side, under new captain Ben Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum successfully chased down the targets of over 275 in all the three matches. Jonny Bairstow’s destructive form proved to be the main reason for their success as his counter-attack approach destroyed the Blackcaps completely in the final two games.

Speaking about how the final clash unfolded at Headingley in Leeds, returning skipper Kane Williamson won the toss and opted to bat first. Tom Latham fell to Stuart Broad, for the ninth time in Tests, for a duck while Will Young scored 20. Williamson also got dismissed to Stuart for 31 as Kiwis struggled at 123/5. But Tom Blundell and Daryl Mitchell joined hands to frustrate the hosts yet again as they shared 120 runs stand. Both continued their exceptional form as the former scored 55 and Mitchell reached his century. The Kiwis posted 329 on the board with Jack Leach picking up 5/100.

Blackcaps speedster Trent Boult tore apart England’s top order as he clean bowled the top three batters with England finding themselves in big trouble at 55/6. But then came the beast mode of Bairstow as he hammered 162 off 157 which included 24 fours. Debutant bowler Jamie Overton amassed 97 batting at no. eight as the duo shared 241 runs stand, the highest seventh-wicket partnership for England in Tests. The hosts got bundled out for 360, taking a 31-run lead.

In the second innings, Latham and Williamson finally struck form as they mustered 76 and 48 runs respectively. But it was that pair of Blundell-Mitchell again who struck yet another century partnership. Mitchell made 56 while wicketkeeper batter Blundell remained unbeaten on 88. Leach took his career-best figures of 5/66 as the Kiwis managed to score 326. Chasing 296, Ollie Pope and Joe Root scored 82 and 86 runs respectively with Bairstow smashing the second-fastest fifty for England in just 30 balls. He remained not out on 71 to guide his side to another successful run-chase. The hosts completely three successive chases of 277, 299, and 296 in as many Tests. Leach won the Player of the Match award while Joe Root and Daryl Mitchell both grabbed the Player of the Series award.

Meanwhile, here are some of the important stats and numbers from the 3^rd Test between England and New Zealand:

 538 – Daryl Mitchell smashed the most runs (538) by a New Zealand batter in a three-match Test series. He surpassed Andrew Jones’s tally of 513 runs which he scored against Sri Lanka in 1991.

538 – Mitchell also registered the most Test runs by a visiting player in England in a three or fewer match series. He went past Hashim Amla’s total of 482 runs which he amassed in the year 2012.

100 – Ben Stokes reached the landmark of 100 sixes in Test cricket. He became the third player after Brendon McCullum (107) and Adam Gilchrist (100) to achieve the feat

5195 – Jonny Bairstow completed the milestone of 5000 Test runs.

30 – Bairstow registered the second-fastest fifty (30 balls) for England in Tests. Ian Botham is on top for smashing it in 28 deliveries against India in 1981.

122.00 – Mitchell has now struck 610 runs at an average of 122.00 with three centuries and as many fifties in his last seven international innings against England.

9 – Tom Latham got dismissed to Stuart Broad for the ninth time in the Whites, which is the most he has been out against any bowler. India spinner R Ashwin has got his wicket eight times.

5/66 – Jack Leach delivered his best spell of 5/66 in Test cricket. His previous best was 5/83 which came against Sri Lanka in 2018.

97 – Jamie Overton registered the highest score of 97 by an England debutant at no. eight or lower.

5 – Mitchell became the fifth New Zealand player to hit three centuries in as many Test matches.

14.50 – Kane Williamson has now scored 116 runs at an average of just 14.50 in his last eight innings with zero fifty against England in England.

6 – New Zealand has now lost six and won only two out of the nine matches since their World Test Championship (WTC) triumph last year. In one game they managed to draw.

241 – Bairstow and Jamie Overton recorded the highest seventh-wicket partnership of 241 for England. They went past Jim Parks and Mike Smith’s tally of 197 against the West Indies in the year 1960.

4 – Mitchell and Tom Blundell scripted four-century partnerships as they became the fifth pair to share four or more hundred partnerships in a series. They are tied with three other pairs on the second spot. David Boon and Mark Waugh top the chart with five such stands against England in 1993.

142 – Zak Crawley has scored just 142 runs in his last ten innings at an average of 14.20.

724 – Mitchell and Blundell also recorded the most partnership runs (724) for Kiwis in a series. They surpassed Martin Crowe and Jones’s tally of 552 runs which they managed to score against Sri Lanka in 1991.

3 – Matty Potts got the better of Kiwi skipper Williamson three times in two matches.

900 – Stokes also completed 900 fours across formats.