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England's preparations for a hot, dry T20 World Cup in India in February brought them on midweek to a chilly, rainy New Zealand's largest city, where they were compelled to hold the final training session before their next match against New Zealand inside. It is not always obvious what role these two-team contests serve, what valuable insights could possibly be gained – but on this occasion, for at least a squad member, that is no concern.

The Batter's Changed Position: From Opener to Middle Order

Tom Banton says he is “still learning now”, and if it is the type of statement often repeated even by players who have already reached the pinnacle of their game, in his situation it is undeniably true. After forging his reputation as a top-order batter, mostly as an starting player, Banton now occupies a totally new role, batting at the middle order. “I didn't have too many conversations,” he said. “They simply brought me back into the team and informed me, ‘Your role will be in the lower batting lineup now.’”

Before his recall in June, the vast majority of Banton’s over 160 senior T20 innings had been as an opener, another 8% at third position and the rest – but for a brief stint at No 7 in a domestic T20 game previously – 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 figured out one thing: “Playing down the order,” he surmised, “is a much tougher than starting the innings.”

Varied Performances in New Zealand

Banton said that “there’s going to be times where it works well and it looks great and on other occasions where it doesn’t”, and the first two games of the tour in the host nation have seen both outcomes. In the first, he lasted a few deliveries and scored a low score before getting out to long-on; in the second, he faced a dozen balls, hit runs, and finished not out.

Thoughts on Comeback and Growth

This tour has witnessed Banton come back to the country in which he first played for his country in November 2019. After that, he moved away of the side, made a brief return in 2022 and then passed a long period in the wilderness before returning for Harry Brook’s initial match as England captain. “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 time. I've discovered 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 two- to three-year period where I was finding my way.”

Support 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 the coach's skill to put him at ease while he figures out how best to seize the opportunity. “Baz came up to me before [Monday’s second T20] and said, ‘Head out and play your natural game.’ It’s nice to have that freedom,” Banton said. “I know it’s only a small thing from the staff, but it provides the backing that if it doesn’t come off, it’s not the end of the world. It’s something so small but for me it’s, ‘OK, I’ve got the backing from the manager and I can go out and perform.’”

Shift in Location and Squad Decisions

Following the first two games of the series at the South Island ground, a stadium with unusually long boundaries, England finish the series on the next day at the Auckland arena, a dual-purpose rugby and cricket ground where the straight boundary at a short distance is among the shortest in the world. With uncertain weather and an new location they have abandoned their usual practice of announcing their lineup two days in advance while they determine if their preferred team here will be the same as the side that started both previous games.

Upcoming Changes for One-Day Matches

Next, they travel to the coastal town and shift attention to ODIs, with a slightly amended squad: Jordan Cox, Zak Crawley and Phil Salt drop out, while Jofra Archer, Ben Duckett, Joe Root and Jamie Smith come in. Most newcomers arrived in Auckland on Wednesday but the scheduling of the bowler's Ashes preparations implies he will arrive two days later, travelling with Mark Wood and Josh Tongue, two seamers who are also building towards the longer format in Australia but are excluded from the white-ball squad. Consequently he will be absent for the opening game at the venue, the stadium where he was racially abused on his only previous appearance, in 2019.