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The English side's training sessions for a warm, arid T20 World Cup in India in the coming month led them on Wednesday to a cool, drizzly New Zealand's largest city, where they were forced to conduct the last practice run ahead of their third game against the Kiwis inside. The purpose isn't always clear what purpose these two-team contests fulfill, what useful lessons could possibly be gained – but on this occasion, for at least a squad member, that is not an issue.

The Batter's New Role: From Opener to Middle Order

Tom Banton says he is “continuing to develop”, and if it is the type of statement often repeated even by players who have long since scaled the pinnacle of their game, in his situation it is certainly accurate. After building his name as a top-order batter, primarily as an starting player, Banton suddenly finds himself a totally new role, coming in at the middle order. “There weren’t really too many conversations,” 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.’”

Prior to returning in June, the vast majority of Banton’s 162 senior T20 innings had been as an opener, a further portion at third position and the remaining handful – but for a brief stint at seventh spot in a domestic T20 game eight years ago – at fourth place. If the team plan to retain him in this new position he requires every chance to become accustomed to it, and he has already worked out one thing: “Batting in the middle order,” he surmised, “is a much tougher than opening.”

Mixed Results in the Tour

The player noted that “sometimes where it works well and it looks great and other times where it fails”, and the initial matches of the winter in New Zealand have featured one of each. In the first, he lasted a few deliveries and made nine runs before getting out to the deep fielder; in the next game, he played 12 deliveries, hit runs, and ended the innings unbeaten.

Reflections on Comeback and Development

This tour has seen Banton return to the country in which he first played for his country in November 2019. Since then, he drifted back out of the team, had a short comeback in recently and then spent a long period in the sidelines before returning for Harry Brook’s initial match as skipper. “During the journey, it was weird,” he said. “It was six years ago when I made my debut. Seems a lot has occurred in that time. I’ve learned a lot about myself. The few years after I got dropped from England was a tough time for me. I had a two- to three-year stretch where I was working myself out.”

Support from Coaching Staff

Currently, he has been assigned something new to tackle. Banton is grateful to have been offered a return, and also for the coach's ability to put him at ease while he figures out how best to seize the opportunity. “The coach approached me before [Monday’s second T20] and said, ‘Go out and play your natural game.’ It's reassuring to have that freedom,” Banton said. “I realize it’s only a small thing someone says, but it provides the backing that if it doesn't work, it’s not a disaster. It’s something so minor but for me it’s, ‘Alright, I’ve got the backing from the head coach and I can go out and perform.’”

Shift in Location and Team Selection

After playing the first two games of the series at the South Island ground, a stadium with expansive playing area, the visitors finish the series on the next day at the Auckland arena, a dual-purpose rugby and cricket ground where the straight boundary at 55m is among the shortest in the world. With uncertain weather and an unfamiliar venue they have dropped their usual practice of revealing their lineup ahead of time while they work out if their preferred team for this match will be the same as the side that began both previous games.

Upcoming Changes for One-Day Matches

Next, they travel to Mount Maunganui and turn focus to one-day internationals, with a slightly amended squad: Jordan Cox, Zak Crawley and Phil Salt drop out, while Jofra Archer, Ben Duckett, Joe Root and Jamie Smith join the squad. Most newcomers landed in Auckland on the same day but the timing of the bowler's Ashes preparations means he will arrive two days later, travelling with two fellow bowlers, two seamers who are also preparing for the Tests in Australia but are excluded from the white-ball squad. As a result Archer will be absent for the opening game at Bay Oval, the stadium where he was subjected to abuse on his sole prior visit, in 2019.