New Zealand vs England | Kane Williamson lauds the steel shown by his team in second Test

After being set a target of 382, New Zealand were off to a steady start as Tom Latham and Jeet Raval put on 42 on the fourth evening. They still needed 340 runs and all three results were possible going into the final day. However, the Kiwis found themselves in trouble as Stuart Broad picked up two wickets (Jeet Raval and Kane Williamson) off the first two balls of the day to dent New Zealand hopes and the team further slipped to 91/4 and 162/6. 

But Colin de Grandhomme battled it out with a 97-ball 45. Giving him company was leg-spinner Ish Sodhi. The duo batted for 25 overs before the former was out hooking and England were once again in the game. However, Neil Wagner batted valiantly along with Sodhi to help New Zealand pull off an unlikely draw and register their first ever series against England at home in 34 years. Skipper Kane Williamson, who was dismissed for a golden duck, lauded the team’s effort on the final day. 

“It was an amazing day of Test cricket. I want to thank Joe and his team - that was a really hard-fought series,” Williamson said after the game as reported by Hindustan Times. 

Neil Wagner and Ish Sodhi blunted the England bowling attack superbly as they batted for more than two hours playing out 31 overs between them which were enough to frustrate England. 

“We didn’t get off to a great start but the guys showed a lot of steel. Ish Sodhi and Neil Wagner were just phenomenal,” the New Zealand skipper added. 

Sodhi was under-par with the ball as he bowled 16 overs in the match and failed to pick up a wicket. However, he was the hero with the bat for the Blackcaps as he batted with brilliant concentration to lead New Zealand to their first Test series victory over England since 1999. 

“There was a bit of drama at the end there but Waggy was really good there. He got me through those tough periods and kept me going. The whole time I was just thinking about playing as straight as I could. They started bowling bumpers around the wicket and I found them quite hard to pick up, so there were tough periods there, but once we got through that I think it was a pretty true wicket. I was disappointed with my performance with the ball so to be able to contribute is massive for me,” Ish Sodhi revealed after the game.