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England's preparations for a hot, dry T20 World Cup in the subcontinent in the coming month led them on midweek to a cool, drizzly New Zealand's largest city, where they were forced to hold the last practice run ahead of their third game against New Zealand indoors. It is not always obvious what purpose these bilateral series fulfill, what valuable insights could possibly be gained – but on this occasion, for at least a squad member, that is no concern.

Tom Banton's New Role: Starting Batsman to Middle Order

The cricketer says he is “still learning now”, and if it is the type of statement regularly trotted out even by players who have already reached the peak of their game, in his situation it is certainly accurate. After forging his reputation as a top-order batter, mostly as an opener, Banton suddenly finds himself a completely unfamiliar role, batting at five or six. “I didn't have too many discussions,” he said. “They simply brought me back into the squad and told, ‘You’re going to bat in the lower batting lineup now.’”

Prior to returning in the summer, 87% of Banton’s over 160 senior T20 innings had been as an starting batsman, another 8% at No3 and the rest – but for seven balls at seventh spot in a T20 Blast game eight years ago – at No 4. If the team plan to keep him in this altered role he requires every chance to get used to it, and he has already worked out one thing: “Batting in the middle order,” he concluded, “is a lot harder than opening.”

Mixed Results in New Zealand

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 initial matches of the tour in New Zealand have seen one of each. In the first, he faced nine balls and scored nine runs before holing out to long-on; in the next game, he played 12 deliveries, scored 29, and ended the innings unbeaten.

Thoughts on Return and Development

This tour has seen Banton come back to the country in which he first played for his country in late 2019. After that, he drifted back out of the side, had a short comeback in 2022 and then spent a long period in the sidelines before returning for Harry Brook’s initial match as skipper. “On the flight over, it was strange,” he said. “Time has passed when I made my debut. Seems a lot has happened in that time. I’ve learned a lot about myself. The few years after I was left out from the national team was a difficult phase for me. I had a couple of years period where I was finding my way.”

Backing from Coaching Staff

And now, he has been assigned something new to tackle. Banton is thankful to have been offered a return, and also for Brendon McCullum’s skill to put him at ease while he figures out how best to grasp it. “Baz approached me before [the recent game] 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 gives me the backing that if it doesn’t come off, it’s not the end of the world. It is so minor but for me it’s, ‘Alright, I’ve got the approval from the head coach and I can step up and perform.’”

Shift in Location and Team Selection

Following the first two games of the series at Christchurch’s Hagley Park, a stadium with expansive playing area, the visitors finish the series on Thursday at the Auckland arena, a dual-purpose rugby and cricket ground where the field edge at a short distance is among the most compact in the sport. With uncertain weather and an unfamiliar venue they have abandoned their recent habit of announcing their lineup two days in advance while they work out if their ideal XI here will be the identical as the side that began the earlier fixtures.

Upcoming Changes for ODI Series

On Friday, they travel to Mount Maunganui and turn focus to ODIs, with a somewhat changed squad: three players drop out, while Jofra Archer, Ben Duckett, Joe Root and Jamie Smith come in. Most newcomers arrived in the city on Wednesday but the scheduling of Archer’s Ashes preparations means he will follow two days later, travelling with Mark Wood and Josh Tongue, fast bowlers who are also preparing for the longer format in the away series but are not in the limited-overs team. As a result he 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.