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England's preparations for a warm, arid T20 World Cup in India in the coming month brought them on midweek to a chilly, rainy New Zealand's largest city, where they were compelled to conduct the final practice run before their next match against the Kiwis inside. The purpose isn't always clear what role these two-team contests fulfill, what useful lessons could possibly be gained – but on this occasion, 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 kind of line often repeated even by players who have long since scaled the pinnacle 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 completely unfamiliar role, batting 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 middle order now.’”

Prior to returning in the summer, 87% of Banton’s over 160 senior T20 innings had been as an opener, a further portion at third position and the rest – but for a brief stint at seventh spot in a T20 Blast game eight years ago – at fourth place. If the team intend to retain 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 much tougher than starting the innings.”

Mixed Results in New Zealand

The player noted that “sometimes where it works well and it appears brilliant and on other occasions where it fails”, and the initial matches of the tour in the host nation have featured both outcomes. In the opener, he lasted a few deliveries and made nine runs before holing out to the deep fielder; in the next game, he played 12 deliveries, scored 29, and finished unbeaten.

Thoughts on Return and Development

This tour has witnessed Banton return to the country in which he first played for his country in November 2019. Since then, he moved away of the team, had a short comeback in 2022 and then spent a long period in the wilderness before coming back for the new captain's initial match as skipper. “During the journey, it was weird,” he said. “It was six years ago when I made my debut. It feels like a lot has happened in that period. I’ve learned a lot about me. The period after I got dropped from England was a difficult phase for me. I had a two- to three-year period where I was finding my way.”

Backing from Coaching Staff

And now, he has been assigned a fresh challenge to work out. Banton is thankful to have been offered a return, and also for Brendon McCullum’s ability to put him at ease while he figures out how best to seize the opportunity. “Baz came up to me before [the recent game] and said, ‘Head out and express yourself.’ It’s nice to have that freedom,” Banton said. “I realize it’s just a brief comment someone says, but it provides the support that if it doesn't work, it’s not the end of the world. It’s something so minor but for me it’s, ‘OK, 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 initial matches of the series at the South Island ground, a stadium with unusually long boundaries, England complete it on the next day at Eden Park, a multi-use rugby and cricket ground where the field edge at a short distance is among the shortest in the sport. With uncertain weather and an new location they have abandoned their recent habit of announcing their team ahead of time while they determine if their preferred team here will be the identical as the one that began the earlier fixtures.

Squad Adjustments for ODI Series

Next, they move to Mount Maunganui and turn focus to ODIs, with a somewhat changed team: Jordan Cox, Zak Crawley and Phil Salt are omitted, while four others join the squad. Most newcomers arrived in Auckland on Wednesday but the scheduling of Archer’s Test match buildup means he will follow later, flying with two fellow bowlers, two seamers who are also preparing for the longer format in the away series but are excluded from the limited-overs team. As a result Archer will miss the opening game at Bay Oval, the ground where he was subjected to abuse on his sole prior visit, in 2019.