England lost the three-Test series 1-2 to New Zealand, with the visitors coming from behind to secure victory. Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, and Nathan Smith were standout performers for the tourists, while England's Ben Stokes and Jofra Archer impressed despite the defeat.
England Player Ratings
Ben Stokes: 57 runs at 14.3; seven wickets at 21.9. He retired when he was England's best bowler, best captain, and a century away from being worth his place as a batter alone. But, as he acknowledged, when the air goes out of the balloon it deflates very quickly. With typical generosity, he bowled only seven overs on the unsatisfactory pitch at Lord's, but put his back into it at Trent Bridge, delivering jaffa after jaffa. He deserved more. Much of his captaincy has been about instilling belief, but if his own belief is wavering, it's probably time to go. Grade B-
Ben Duckett: 246 runs at 41.0; two catches. Back at Trent Bridge, he looked at ease, pulling and slashing square and driving through the covers. He scored England's only century of the series, but didn't push on often enough. Grade B
Emilio Gay: 139 runs at 23.2; six catches. His fielding lifted the standard. He looked unflustered at the crease and possesses a lovely cover drive. He should keep his place for the second half of the Test season, but might need a score to hold it for South Africa. Grade B-
Jacob Bethell: 103 runs at 17.2; four wickets at 23.3; five catches. In full flow, his attacking strokes are reminiscent of David Gower, but he does not get into that zone often enough. He has passed 40 only twice in his past 12 innings, which is unsustainable for a No 3. Grade C
Joe Root: 171 runs at 28.5; one wicket at 44.0; two catches. After two poor matches with the bat and a shocker as captain, he might be looking for new replies. Root can expect his front pad to be ruthlessly targeted by seamers until he solves the lbw problem. Grade C
Harry Brook: 217 runs at 36.2; no wicket; six catches. The tide is turning. Even his staunchest defenders accept he has to find a balance. He leaves too many runs on the field, and whether he will continue to leave matches, series, or even a career on the field is now a matter for debate. Grade B-
Jamie Smith: 101 runs at 25.3; seven catches. He has developed a knack of unshowy, slightly awkward competence behind the stumps, punctuated by rare but high-profile errors. He eventually found some form with the bat, but the cause had already been lost when he ran out Joe Root. Grade C-
James Rew: 39 runs at 19.5; three catches. The man long trailed as a Test keeper looked naive and nervous throughout his debut. He will come back better. Grade C-
Jordan Cox: 52 runs at 26.0; one catch. He showed that bit of extra time at the crease, which speaks to the class he will need when he returns. Grade B-
Gus Atkinson: 60 runs at 15; 10 wickets at 16.8. He is a very fine bowler: disciplined in his lines and lengths. If there's something in the wicket, he finds it. Grade B+
Ollie Robinson: 30 runs at 15.0; seven wickets at 11.0. When he was on the field, he was pure class. He made an explosive return at Lord's with three wickets in his first over. He would play as many Tests as he likes were substitutes allowed. Grade A-
Jofra Archer: 25 runs at 6.25; 11 wickets at 22.8. The fact that he keeps hitting batters shows how hard he is to play against. He worked very hard for his captain. With better support in the field, his figures would be considerably more impressive. Grade A-
Matthew Fisher: 50 runs at 50.0; five wickets at 24.0. He took his wickets on his home ground and chipped in with some runs. Grade B+
Josh Tongue: 20 runs at 4.0; eight wickets at 49.9; one catch. His release point allows him to arrow the ball into the batter and jump it away. But the wickets did not come. Figures of 3 for 161 and 0 for 150 will lose far more Test matches than they draw or win. Grade C
Sonny Baker: four runs at 4.0; three wickets at 53.7. He looks and plays like a 17-year-old who has been promoted to the Saturday firsts. He needs 9,900 more hours. Grade D
Shoaib Bashir: 14 runs at 14.0; three wickets at 49.0; one catch. He can still get good batters out, but the cost is excessive. His economy rate of pushing four an over across 21 Tests remains stubbornly high. Grade C-
New Zealand Player Ratings
Tom Latham: 189 runs at 31.5; three catches. He won the toss in the decider, made the right call to bat, and helped put on 319 for the first wicket. He worked effectively off the field to deal with the shock retirement and numerous injuries. Grade A-
Devon Conway: 224 runs at 37.3. He delivered his innings of substance in the first innings of the deciding Test. His experience added weight to a well-balanced batting unit. Grade B
Kane Williamson: 18 runs at 9.0; two catches. He backed into retirement after two failures on a pitch unworthy of his talent. Grade C-
Henry Nicholls: 197 runs at 49.3. Invited to step into the No 3 slot after a double collapse at Lord's, he answered the call with a second-innings 121 that took the game away from England. He also ran out Root on the last day. Grade A-
Rachin Ravindra: 218 runs at 36.3; no wicket; one catch. He was almost comically inept in the field but improved steadily and showed his class in a brilliant 96 in the second innings of the Third Test. Grade B+
Daryl Mitchell: 235 runs at 47.0; nine catches. He found a technique that worked on spicy pitches. At Trent Bridge, he arrived with his team three down and a lead of 135. He left undefeated on 100 with the lead 372. Grade A
Tom Blundell: 123 runs at 20.5; nine catches. The tactic of standing up to bowling regardless of pace discombobulated England's best. He did not score the same volume of runs, but the threat paralysed England. Grade A-
Glenn Phillips: 181 runs at 60.3; two catches. The Kiwis' wholehearted trier was very good indeed in his two Tests. He worked out a way to score runs on the Lord's minefield and did the same at The Oval. Grade A
Mitchell Santner: four runs at 2.0; two wickets at 56.5; one catch. He looked very rusty when he answered the call for the Third Test but found enough to pull his weight. Grade B-
Nathan Smith: 68 runs at 11.3; 16 wickets at 23.0; three catches. A revelation. He is much quicker than expected and had the nous to hit the right spot ball after ball. He was the standout player for his team in the series. Grade A
Kyle Jamieson: 91 runs at 30.3; 10 wickets at 24.2; two catches. He worked out a way to make runs, albeit slogging. He hit the deck hard and caused batters real problems. Grade A-
Matt Henry: six runs at 1.5; 12 wickets at 13.3; one catch. He showed the nous and class that county cricket followers have come to expect. He bowls as if he has the whole spell in his mind. Grade A
Zak Foulkes: six runs at 6.0; six wickets at 14.5. He stepped in as a concussion substitute and, despite a quirky action, hit his lines and lengths. He picked up Stokes and Brook twice each. Grade A-
Will O'Rourke: 20 runs at 5.0; 10 wickets at 25.6. His height and pace will trouble batters around the world for years to come. Grade B+
Blair Tickner: four runs at no average; no wicket. He showed bravery after a concussive blow but was wisely withdrawn. Grade N/A
Ben Sears: 19 runs at 19.0; one wicket at 85.0. He got the first-innings centurion Duckett with a brute of a lifter and showed excellent fight to get Mitchell through to his century. Grade C
