ENG vs NZ: Mitchell, Foulkes leave England staring at defeat in Stokes' last Test

New Zealand tightened their grip on the third Test against England as they set a massive 373-run target for the hosts on Day 4 at Trent Bridge, Nottingham. Daryl Mitchell (100) and Rachin Ravindra (94) continued to hold fort for the Kiwis on a challenging surface, helping them extend their lead as New Zealand declared their second innings on 288/9.

The visitors also managed to get the hosts four down before stumps with Zakary Foulkes (3/42) running through the England batting lineup, who finished the day on 103/4 with Joe Root (9*) and Emilio Gay (6*) at the crease. Earlier, New Zealand resumed their innings on 120/3 with Ravindra (60*) and Mitchell (26*) at the crease.

The former continued to keep his innings going, while Mitchell began with a cautious approach on Day 4. The duo extended their fourth-wicket partnership to 129 before Ravindra fell on 94, with Shoaib Bashir (1/42) getting him out lbw. As a result, New Zealand went into lunch on 180/4, leading by 264 runs.

In the second session, Tom Blundell (18 off 24) began playing some shots to get the scoreboard moving, with Mitchell taking his time at the other end. The wicketkeeper batter eventually fell, while trying to pull a Jofra Archer (4/53) bouncer, getting holed out at long leg.

Mitchell and Sears take lead past 370

Mitchell eventually completed his hard-fought fifty off 170 balls, but two quick wickets in the form of Mitchell Santner (0) and Nathan Smith (1) left New Zealand on 206/7, with the lead still not over 300. Zakary Foulkes (6 off 14) also couldn’t survive for long as Ben Stokes got him caught at slip with the crowd firmly behind him right after his retirement announcement became public.

Meanwhile, New Zealand went into tea on 234/8 with Mitchell still holding his ground. He got involved in a crucial 59-run stand with Ben Sears (19 off 40) for the ninth wicket, which pushed New Zealand’s lead past 360. Mitchell brought up his hard-fought sixth Test century and the Kiwis eventually declared their innings on 288/9.

Ben Stokes' opening fireworks

Set a massive target to chase, England captain Ben Stokes took matters into his own hands as he came out to open the innings just the third time in his Test career, alongside Ben Duckett. The England captain was in no mood to settle as he played some extravagant shots, racing to 30 off just 19 balls.

England collapse before stumps

His farewell Test innings was brought to an end by Zakary Foulkes, as Stokes got caught while attempting a wild slog sweep. Jacob Bethell (0 off 2) departed in the same over, leaving England on 50/2. Foulkes further accounted for the big scalp of Harry Brook (21 off 9), who got holed out to fine leg, playing one shot too many.

To add to England’s misery, Ben Sears surprised Ben Duckett (36 off 42) with a rising delivery, and Daryl Mitchell did the rest at first slip. As a result, England lost four wickets before stumps, finishing the day on 103/4, needing 270 more runs to win on Day 5.