Christchurch: Sam Curran salvaged England's innings before the first match of their winter travels was washed out by rain in Christchurch. Harry Brook's side battled canny bowling and a tricky pitch to post 153-6 in the opening T20, but the weather denied New Zealand the chance to start their chase, resulting in a frustrating start to a low-profile white-ball series. This contest comes little more than a month before the highly anticipated Ashes tour, and England named three of their squad to face Australia in the XI at the Hagley Oval. Three one-day internationals follow, when Joe Root, Ben Duckett, and Jofra Archer are among the other Test players who will join the touring party.
According to BBC, while most attention is on the Ashes, this was the first of only six T20s England has before the T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka begins in February. Sam Curran, who was picked for the first time in any format under coach Brendon McCullum last month, emerged as a critical player for England. He offers a second seam-bowling option in the batting-heavy side favored by Brook. Curran was informed by the England hierarchy that earning a place as an all-rounder who could bat in the top six was his route back into the side rather than as a bowler.
Having seen Bethell, Buttler, Jordan Cox, and Tom Banton chip catches on a surface that challenged the batsmen, Curran was fortunate to be dropped twice. Despite not finding his best batting rhythm, he managed to score crucial runs, including a six off Mitchell Santner and taking 19 runs off the final over from Jacob Duffy. This match may not be memorable, but Curran made the most of the opportunity he was given.
Harry Brook commended Curran's performance, mentioning the honest feedback from McCullum that motivated him to practice hard and perform well. "Everybody in world cricket knows he's done it pretty much everywhere. He's a very valuable player to have in the middle order, a left-hander as well. He's going to be around for a while, I think. It's good to have him back," said Brook.
The pitch conditions played a significant role in the match. England captain Harry Brook noted, "The pitch did a little bit to start with. Matt Henry, especially, made the most of the surface. We obviously want to adapt to the situation and the surface but, with the depth of batting we've got, we can go hard all the way through." Similarly, New Zealand captain Mitchell Santner acknowledged the performance of his team with the new ball, stating, "The boys started extremely well with the new ball. It was a pretty good performance. It was doing a bit today and it was handy to chuck the ball around."