This opening day was everything the series promised: keenly fought, tight and fluctuating.
Set against the backdrop of the beautiful Hagley Oval, its grass banks bursting with spectators, it was hard to imagine a more perfect setting for Test cricket.
Stokes, in the city of his birth, surprised no one when he chose to field. Despite the sunshine, Latham said he would have done the same, just as 12 captains in the previous 13 Tests at this ground have done.
Whether England failed to get the ball in the right place often enough, or the pitch did not do its part, is up for debate but there seemed no obvious demons for the batters to battle.
England threatened in peaks and troughs. Their fielding was sometimes sloppy – they failed to review Ravindra’s edge off Stokes when he had 20 and the skipper’s drop of Phillips is growing in importance. The tourists gave away 21 runs in wides and no-balls.
Despite all of that, they hung in. Ollie Pope, standing in behind the stumps, went unnoticed and Stokes conjured the short-ball tactics. Most importantly Bashir, after a disappointing tour of Pakistan, emerged as a wicket-taking threat by slowing his pace.
The expectation is this pitch will get better for batting. England can feel satisfied with their work, even if the dangerous Phillips could yet hit New Zealand to a very strong total.
