England battling to avoid first Test defeat after BJ Watling's 205 | Ali Martin

  • England 353 & 55-3; New Zealand 615-9 dec
  • BJ Watling smashed 205 leaving New Zealand primed for victory on day five

With its stunning coastal views, buzzing hipster nightspots and beach lifestyle, Mount Maunganui on New Zealand’s North Island makes for an unlikely place to find a torture chamber. Yet at the seemingly pleasant Bay Oval here were Joe Root’s tourists being given the Iron Maiden, the Heretic’s Fork and the Scold’s Bridle all in one. BJ Watling’s 205 - the first double hundred by a wicketkeeper against England - and Mitchell Santner’s 126 – his first hundred in Test cricket – made you wonder whether the Black Caps might be rebranded as the Black Hoods.

Related: New Zealand v England: first Test, day four – as it happened

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from The Guardian https://ift.tt/2QH6wOe
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