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The English side's preparations for a hot, dry T20 World Cup in India in February led them on midweek to a cool, drizzly Auckland, where they were compelled to hold the last training session ahead of their third game against the Kiwis indoors. It is not always obvious what purpose these bilateral series fulfill, what useful lessons could possibly be learned – but on this instance, for at least a squad member, that is no concern.

Tom Banton's Changed Position: From Opener to Middle Order

The cricketer says he is “still learning now”, and if it is the type of statement often repeated even by athletes who have already reached the peak of their sport, in his situation it is certainly accurate. After building his name as a frontline hitter, mostly as an starting player, Banton now occupies a totally new role, coming in at the middle order. “I didn't have too many discussions,” he said. “I just got brought me back into the team and informed me, ‘You’re going to bat in the lower batting lineup now.’”

Before his recall in the summer, 87% of Banton’s 162 professional T20 appearances had been as an opener, another 8% at third position and the rest – but for seven balls at seventh spot in a T20 Blast game previously – at No 4. If the team intend to keep him in this new position he needs every possible opportunity to become accustomed to it, and he has figured out a key point: “Batting in the middle order,” he surmised, “is a lot harder than starting the innings.”

Mixed Results in the Tour

The player noted that “there’s going to be times where it works well and it appears brilliant and on other occasions where it fails”, and the first two games of the tour in New Zealand have featured one of each. In the opener, he faced a few deliveries and scored a low score before getting out to long-on; in the next game, he played a dozen balls, scored 29, and finished not out.

Reflections on Return and Development

This tour has seen Banton return to the nation in which he made his international debut in late 2019. After that, he moved away of the side, made a brief return in 2022 and then spent more than three years in the wilderness before returning for the new captain's initial match as England captain. “During the journey, it was strange,” he said. “It was six years ago when I made my debut. It feels like a lot has occurred in that period. I've discovered a lot about myself. The period after I got dropped from England was a difficult phase for me. I had a couple of years stretch where I was finding my way.”

Support from Coaching Staff

Currently, he has been given a fresh challenge to tackle. Banton is grateful to have been offered a return, and also for the coach's skill to make him comfortable while he works out how best to grasp it. “The coach approached me before [the recent game] and said, ‘Head out and play your natural game.’ It's reassuring to have that liberty,” Banton said. “I realize it’s only a small thing someone says, but it gives me the backing that if it doesn't work, it’s not a disaster. It is so small but for me it’s, ‘Alright, I’ve got the approval from the manager and I can go out and do it.’”

Venue Change and Squad Decisions

Following the initial matches of the series at Christchurch’s Hagley Park, a stadium with expansive playing area, the visitors complete it on the next day at Eden Park, a dual-purpose rugby and cricket ground where the field edge at 55m is among the shortest in the sport. With changeable conditions and an unfamiliar venue they have abandoned their usual practice of announcing their team two days in advance while they work out if their ideal XI for this match will be the same as the side that began the earlier fixtures.

Squad Adjustments for ODI Series

On Friday, they move to the coastal town and turn focus to ODIs, with a somewhat changed squad: Jordan Cox, Zak Crawley and Phil Salt are omitted, while Jofra Archer, Ben Duckett, Joe Root and Jamie Smith join the squad. Most newcomers landed in the city on Wednesday but the scheduling of Archer’s Ashes preparations means he will follow two days later, flying with two fellow bowlers, two seamers who are also preparing for the longer format in Australia but are not in the white-ball squad. As a result he will be absent for the first match at Bay Oval, the ground where he was racially abused on his sole prior visit, in 2019.