England hopes rest on Joe Root with New Zealand five wickets from victory in Oval Test

Saturday, 20 June 2026 20:30

England's hopes of avoiding defeat in the second Test rest on the shoulders of stand-in captain Joe Root, with New Zealand closing in on a series-levelling victory at The Kia Oval.

On the day he became the second player in history to reach 14,000 Test runs, Root (75 not out) saw England through to stumps on 182-5 alongside Jordan Cox - who is yet to score - with the hosts 281 runs away from an improbable victory.

Early wickets looked to have hampered an already daunting record chase of 463 before Harry Brook (58 off 54) and Root posted half-centuries after tea in a stand of 97 for the third wicket that had England daring to dream.

Scorecard: England vs New Zealand, second Test, Oval
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But the Black Caps landed telling blows in a captivating evening session, with Matt Henry dismissing Brook after he and Root had been spared by technology, before James Rew (15) fell lbw to Kyle Jamieson (3-37) following a superb review.

The odds remain stacked against England, with New Zealand just five wickets from victory, but with Root at the crease, hope - however slim - remains that the unlikeliest of results is still possible.

Root England's last hope as NZ close on victory

After Brook had dropped Daryl Mitchell when he nicked Jofra Archer's first ball of the day behind, England got the seven wickets they needed in swift fashion.

Brook was moved to second slip after his spilled catch diving from first, and immediately atoned as centurion Henry Nicholls (121) was sent packing, having added just two to his overnight score.

Wicketkeeper Rew made amends for a spate of dropped catches on day three by snaffling a rebound that had been parried by Root at leg-slip to dismiss Tom Blundell for 16.

Archer dismissed Glenn Phillips for three to extinguish any hope of him replicating his first-innings hundred as New Zealand reached lunch on 345-6.

Mitchell finally fell in the second over after lunch, bowled while attempting to scoop Matt Fisher, who delivered an excellent response to being smashed down the ground by Jamieson (6) by uprooting his middle stump.

Fisher continued to mop up the New Zealand tail, with Emilio Gay taking a solid catch after Nathan Smith's mistimed shot over midwicket, before Sonny Baker wrapped up the innings with the wicket of Henry.

England's pyrrhic success with the ball presented the greater challenge of chasing down 463 which unravelled inside four overs.

Rachin Ravindra, plagued by a catalogue of drops in the series, caught Gay at midwicket to take a step towards redemption before Jamieson trapped Jacob Bethell lbw to seal a double-wicket maiden that left England 13-2.

England were in all sorts of trouble when Ben Duckett toe-ended Will O'Rourke to Henry at mid-on, but Root's passing of 14,000 Test runs helped them through to tea on 54-3.

Brook and Root shifted through the gears after tea, Brook putting his foot down with 10 fours and a six to seal a blistering 33-ball half-century.

Root was spared by an inside edge off the following delivery, confirmed after review, just as Henry thought he had trapped England's captain lbw.

Henry was denied again after Root sealed his 50 with an eighth four, UltraEdge coming to Brook's rescue as he was spared after being given out lbw.

It was third time lucky for Henry, whose perseverance and discipline with the ball paid off as Brook edged behind to Mitchell, bringing his blistering innings to an end, with Jamieson later picking up Rew's wicket to all but end England's hopes.

Athers: Root gives England smidgeon of hope

Sky Sports Cricket's Michael Atherton:

"New Zealand have a quality attack. We saw that at Lord's, albeit on a much more helpful pitch.

"They've got four seamers who keep coming and give you very little. You've got to work hard and fight hard for your runs.

"I can't really see a way out of this for England, but those who have tickets are lucky that England's best [Root] is still at the crease.

"There's just a smidgeon of hope there, maybe."

Jamieson calls on New Zealand to stay 'ruthless'

New Zealand seamer Kyle Jamieson, speaking to Sky Sports Cricket:

"It's certainly nicer to have them five down than four down. It was a nice one to grab at the end of the day and it sets us up well for tomorrow.

"Tom [Latham] was asking if I thought it was straight. I said it was definitely straight, it was just whether it was umpire's call on height - lucky it kept low and I managed to grab that one.

"We've just got to try and stay patient tomorrow, stay ruthless. Whether it comes quick or in the last over of the day, we've got to make sure we're there."