JOE DENLY and Ben Stokes led the way as England entered their new era of Test cricket with a batting display of patience and restraint.
The mantra under captain Joe Root and new head coach Chris Silverwood is to bat long, take as much time as necessary and absorb balls and pressure.
Well, England followed their instructions to the letter and scored just 241-4 in 90 overs on day one of the First Test against New Zealand.
It would have been plenty fewer if Stokes had not accelerated significantly in the final hour – including four balls in four balls against Kiwi left-armer Trent Boult.
The last of those came courtesy of an edge and a dropped catch by Ross Taylor in the slips. Stokes had 63 at the time.
Every indication is that Stokes will follow his incredible summer with a big winter.
Englands batsmen showed determination and concentration and it certainly made a change after they have been 30-3 so frequently in recent years.
Denly and opener Rory Burns made half-centuries and Stokes had reached 67 not out by the close. Denly was caught behind off Tim Southee with the second new ball deep into the final session.
In fact, the only man to fail completely was Root, who took 21 balls to get off the mark and then tamely guided his next delivery into the hands of second slip.
Kent batsman Denly feared he would miss the Test series after damaging ankle ligaments when he trod on a boundary rope during fielding practice three weeks ago.
After wearing a moon boot for a week and using crutches, his recovery was accelerated by being attached to an ice machine every hour.
Denly took 21 balls to score his first run – the same as Root – but then was not afraid to take on the pull shot whenever Neil Wagner pitched short, which was often.
Apart from his pull shots, Denly was mainly content to accumulate although he did hit left-arm spinner Mitch Santner for a lofted drive over extra cover for four and a straight six in the same over.
Denly and Stokes put on 83 for the fourth wicket – the third half-century stand of the innings. Stokes, after a watchful start, produced the most aggressive batting of the day in the final session with several spanking drives and superbly-timed flicks through mid-wicket.
Root chose to bat and became only the third captain in the last 34 Tests in New Zealand not to bowl first. The theory here is that batting is tricky on day one but easier on days two and three.
Root got it right because batting was comfortable right from the start at the Bay Oval ground, hosting a Test match for the first time.
Then Dom Sibley became the first England player for more than six years to hit his opening ball in Test cricket for four.
Sibley was handed his cap by ex-skipper and opener Mike Atherton before the game – and promptly clipped Kiwi left-armer Trent Boult to the mid-wicket boundary.
Not since Chris Woakes against the Aussies at the Oval in 2013 has any England debutant done that.
But Sibley is renowned as a someone who takes his time and soon reverted to type. His next run did not arrive until his 23rd ball.
Sibley and Burns – who both attended Whitgift School in Croydon, South London – put on 52 for the first wicket until Sibley was caught at first slip for 22.
Instead of the famed swing bowling duo of Boult and Southee, it was all-rounder Colin de Grandhommes gentle nibblers that caused England most concern.
De Grandhomme accounted for Sibley and then coaxed Burns into edging a catch behind.
Earlier, the Kiwis appealed only half-hearted for an edge by Burns, on ten, against Boult and decided not to review. But Hotspot detected a faint edge. The Surrey captain would have been out.
Burns was struck on the helmet by Wagner on 36 and then, a run later, edged Southee between first and second slip as he struggled to find his fluency after lunch. He narrowly survived an lbw shout on 44 which was umpires call on height after Burns was given not out and the Blackcaps reviewed.
Burns and Root were dismissed in the space of seven runs but Denly and Stokes made sure it was Englands day. After Denly was out, Surrey’s Ollie Pope played a couple of delightful shots and reached 18 not out from 23 balls.
