England's T20 contest versus New Zealand ended exactly how it began, due to rain. On a previously dry day, the elements teased and taunted. Rain first intervened at evening, two minutes after the match began. Following a short restart, it came back, paused, gave the ground staff a bit of time to mop up, let officials plan a 10pm restart, and then fell once again at just before 10. Only 25 deliveries occurred.
"You don’t want to come all the way over to New Zealand and have just one match," Harry Brook said. "Very frustrating."
Officially, the English side called correctly and chose to bowl. The initial overs yielded boundaries, struck by Seifert—a tantalising glimpse of the run-scoring a combination of a flat pitch, strong winds, and Eden Park’s diminutive boundaries might have produced.
The final balls cleared the ropes, the batters pulling into the stands. The Kiwis were 38/1, from 3.4 overs, as the match was called off.
For all his frustration, Harry still has three one-day internationals to come, but three members of this England squad will no longer be involved once the action moves to the Bay Oval on Sunday. Crawley remains in NZ to prepare for the Ashes while Salt and Jordan Cox (18) return home.
This Friday is the first anniversary of Cox's exclusion from England’s Test series in New Zealand with a thumb fracture sustained in training. He likely hopes his luck in this country could vary as the weather.
It marked the initial attempt an international had been attempted in Auckland in October and clearly showed the reason. "I guess October showers are likely," said skipper Santner. "It’s always nice to play England any season. The problem was that they were often scheduled to play England not playing England."
England managed to secure a single win, thereby winning the series, and Brook’s analysis of it was as optimistic as the planners: "We’ve had a hell of a lot of fun," he remarked. "It was very beneficial. Spending time together and build camaraderie surely aids you during games. We enjoyed ourselves and smiles. It was truly valuable."
