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The English side's preparations for a hot, dry T20 World Cup in India in the coming month brought them on midweek to a cool, drizzly Auckland, where they were forced to hold the final practice run ahead of their next match against the Kiwis indoors. It is not always obvious what role these bilateral series fulfill, what useful lessons could possibly be learned – but on this occasion, for at least one of the players, that is not an issue.

Tom Banton's New Role: Starting Batsman to Middle Order

The cricketer says he is “still learning now”, and if it is the kind of line often repeated even by players who have already reached the peak of their sport, in his case it is undeniably true. After building his name as a top-order batter, mostly as an opener, Banton now occupies a totally new role, batting at the middle order. “There weren’t really too many discussions,” he said. “I just got brought me back into the squad and told, ‘You’re going to bat in the middle order now.’”

Prior to returning in June, 87% of Banton’s 162 senior T20 innings had been as an opener, another 8% at third position and the remaining handful – but for a brief stint at No 7 in a domestic T20 game eight years ago – at fourth place. If the team intend to keep him in this new position 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.”

Varied Performances in New Zealand

Banton said that “there’s going to be times where it works well and it appears brilliant and on other occasions where it fails”, and the initial matches of the winter in the host nation have seen one of each. In the first, he faced nine balls and made a low score before holing out to the deep fielder; in the second, he played 12 deliveries, scored 29, and ended the innings unbeaten.

Reflections on Comeback and Growth

The current series has seen Banton return to the nation in which he first played for his country in November 2019. After that, he moved away of the side, had a short comeback in 2022 and then passed more than three years in the sidelines before returning for Harry Brook’s first T20 as skipper. “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 period after I was left out from England was a difficult phase for me. I had a two- to three-year stretch where I was working myself out.”

Backing from Team Management

And now, he has been given a fresh challenge to work out. Banton is grateful to have been offered a return, and also for Brendon McCullum’s skill to make him comfortable while he works out how best to grasp it. “The coach approached me before [the recent game] and said, ‘Go out and express yourself.’ It’s nice to have that freedom,” Banton said. “I realize it’s just a brief comment someone says, but it gives me the support that if it doesn't work, it’s not a disaster. It is so small but for me it’s, ‘Alright, 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 series at the South Island ground, a stadium with expansive playing area, the visitors 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 shortest in the world. With uncertain weather and an unfamiliar venue they have abandoned their usual practice of announcing their lineup two days in advance while they work out if their preferred team here will be the identical as the side that started both previous games.

Squad Adjustments for ODI Series

On Friday, they travel to the coastal town and shift attention to ODIs, with a slightly amended squad: three players drop out, while four others come in. Three of those players landed in the city on Wednesday but the timing of the bowler's Ashes preparations means he will arrive later, travelling with two fellow bowlers, two seamers who are also building towards the longer format in Australia but are excluded from the white-ball squad. As a result Archer will be absent for the first match at the venue, the ground where he was racially abused on his sole prior visit, in a few years back.