FINALLY, VINCE IS CONVINCING
Under-fire James shows his Test pedigree
If JAMES VINCE was not quite drinking in the last chance saloon yesterday when he walked out here after yet another early England wicket, then at the very least he must have been raising a glass to his lips.
The selection of Vince for this tour was not welcomed with enthusiasm by many England supporters after an underwhelming Ashes when he was full of style but all too short on substance.
And when he became the odd man out in Auckland as it became clear Ben Stokes would only be able to play as a batsman, it did look as though he might be quietly eased out of the picture ahead of the summer Tests at home.
Even when England’s capitulation at Eden Park led to a rethink ahead of this all-important second Test it was assumed Liam Livingstone had a better chance of making his debut than a recall for Vince.
Yet the modern England believe in continuity and it was remembered by Joe Root and Trevor Bayliss that Plan A here was for Vince to play in both Tests so they could discover once and for all whether he had what it takes.
They do not yet have the full answer but Vince did enough on the third day of this final Test to at least earn himself another go when England play Pakistan in two home Tests next month.
There was huge pressure on Vince when he arrived at the fall of Alastair Cook with England just 53 ahead after New Zealand had added an enterprising 86 to their overnight 192 for six.
Another cameo, with a couple of dreamy drives and then a soft dismissal, would have left Vince’s Test future in jeopardy but he battled through a tough start to stand within reach of his first Test century.
Vince being Vince, he aimed one flashy drive too many at Trent Boult and was well caught in the slips by Ross Taylor on 73. But by that stage he had taken England to what should be a commanding position.
If Vince can look forward to at least two more Tests to prove his worth, then so too can Mark Stoneman, his partner in a second-wicket stand of 123.
In Stoneman’s case, the jury remains firmly out. He came into this Test with four international half-centuries but no score of 60 and while he at least reached that score here, he rode his luck.
He was actually given out on 35 by Bruce Oxenford to what many in the ground believed was a clear edge but Stoneman knew the ball from Neil Wagner had hit his shoulder and reviewed. Technology agreed.
If that was good use of the Decision Review System then Stoneman was downright fortunate to be dropped twice, when on 48 and then 57, before he played one loose shot too often outside off-stump and was caught by BJ Watling.
‘It’s important for James and Mark to keep that positivity in their play,’ said Graham Thorpe, the England batting coach. ‘They’re still developing in their Test careers but I was pleased with the way they didn’t back off.
‘We must continue to look at the good James does in terms of stroke-play and continue working on the mental side of his game and his ability to rotate the strike. They’re in charge of their destiny whenever they walk to the crease.’
Cook has spent 12 years at the top but whether he will turn that into a lucky 13 remains to be seen after another failure here that turned this into statistically the worst of his 45 Test series.
Admittedly, there have only been two matches but Cook has scored just 23 runs in four innings at 5.75. He has been dismissed each time by Boult, to raise again questions over just how much longer the former captain will go on.
England are not exactly blessed with opening options and will not want to hurry Cook to the exit. How much fire he still has in his belly will be left to him.
‘I watch Alastair practising and he’s done some different things, with some aggressive nets to try to shake things up a bit,’ Thorpe said. ‘You can clearly see the hunger’s still there and around the group he’s still chipper.’
Earlier, Stuart Broad and Jimmy Anderson had taken two each of the last four wickets to fall, with Southee holding them up with a punchy 50, as they claimed all 10 between them, just as Southee and Boult had done for New Zealand.
This was the first time the two sets of opening bowlers had taken the first 20 wickets in a Test since 1912. There was still no sign of anyone else getting in on the act by the end of day three.
By then, Joe Root and Dawid Malan had extended England’s lead to 231 and they hoped to turn that into a match-winning advantage on day four. How they need to end this winter on the high that victory here would bring.