🔗 Share this article

England's preparations for a warm, arid T20 World Cup in India in the coming month led them on midweek to a chilly, rainy Auckland, where they were compelled to hold the last training session ahead of their next match against the Kiwis inside. It is not always obvious what purpose these bilateral series serve, what valuable insights could possibly be learned – but on this occasion, for at least a squad member, that is no concern.

The Batter's New Role: From Opener to Lower Down

Tom Banton says he is “still learning now”, and if it is the type of statement regularly trotted out even by athletes who have long since scaled the peak of their sport, in his situation it is undeniably true. After forging his reputation as a top-order batter, primarily as an starting player, Banton now occupies a totally new role, batting at five or six. “I didn't have too many conversations,” he said. “They simply brought me back into the squad and told, ‘Your role will be in the lower batting lineup now.’”

Prior to returning in June, the vast majority of Banton’s 162 senior T20 innings had been as an opener, another 8% at third position and the rest – but for a brief stint at No 7 in a T20 Blast game previously – at fourth place. If England intend to retain him in this new position he requires every chance to become accustomed to it, and he has already worked out a key point: “Playing down the order,” he surmised, “is a lot harder than starting the innings.”

Varied Performances in the Tour

The player noted that “sometimes where it comes off and it looks great and other times where it doesn’t”, and the first two games of the winter in New Zealand have featured both outcomes. In the first, he faced a few deliveries and made nine runs before getting out to the deep fielder; in the second, he faced a dozen balls, hit runs, and ended the innings unbeaten.

Thoughts on Return and Growth

The current series has witnessed Banton return to the country in which he first played for his country in November 2019. Since then, he drifted back out of the side, had a short comeback in 2022 and then spent a long period in the wilderness before returning for Harry Brook’s first T20 as England captain. “On the flight over, it was weird,” he said. “Time has passed when I made my debut. Seems a lot has happened in that period. I've discovered a lot about myself. The few years after I got dropped from the national team 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 given something new to tackle. Banton is thankful to have been offered a return, and also for the coach's ability to make him comfortable while he figures out how best to seize the opportunity. “The coach approached me before [Monday’s second T20] and said, ‘Go out and play your natural game.’ It’s nice to have that freedom,” Banton said. “I realize it’s just a brief comment someone says, but it gives me the backing that if it doesn’t come off, it’s not the end of the world. It’s something so small but for me it’s, ‘OK, I’ve got the approval from the manager and I can go out and perform.’”

Venue Change and Squad Decisions

After playing the initial matches of the series at the South Island ground, a stadium with expansive playing area, the visitors complete it on Thursday at Eden Park, a dual-purpose sports facility where the straight boundary at 55m is among the most compact in the sport. With uncertain weather and an unfamiliar venue they have abandoned their recent habit of announcing their lineup ahead of time while they work out if their preferred team here will be the identical as the one that started the earlier fixtures.

Upcoming Changes for One-Day Matches

Next, they travel to Mount Maunganui and turn focus to ODIs, with a somewhat changed team: Jordan Cox, Zak Crawley and Phil Salt are omitted, while four others come in. Three of those players landed in the city on Wednesday but the timing of Archer’s Ashes preparations means he will arrive later, travelling with Mark Wood and Josh Tongue, two seamers who are also preparing for the Tests in Australia but are excluded from the limited-overs team. As a result Archer will be absent for the first match at the venue, the ground where he was subjected to abuse on his only previous appearance, in 2019.