New Zealand inflicted an excruciatingly dismal defeat through batting and winning a match by 423 runs on the third Test Tuesday, prompting paceman Tim Southee to end his career on a victorious note.
The home country’s dramatic performance in Hamilton was sealed on day four having taken seven wickets in 41.2 overs as England fell apart to finish at 234 and record their fourth biggest Test defeat by runs.
It was New Zealand’s equal best victory margin, a complete reversal of the first two Tests, which England won rather easily to clinch the three-match series.
Southee finished with 2-34 in his 107th and last Test, marking the end of an era of one of the best players of New Zealand.
He is now the second highest Test wicket-taker for New Zealand with 391 Test wickets, second only to Sir Richard Hadlee.
A ninth wicket would bring New Zealand victory because Ben Stokes was not going to bat.
The England captain limped off on Monday afternoon with a hamstring tear, and a team spokesperson said he would only bat “if needed”.
A newly found optimism hung thick in the air in England as they resumed at 18-2, but their hopes dimmed further by the loss of Jacob Bethell for 76, Joe Root for 54 and Harry Brook for just one before lunch.
They looked comfortable for the first hour before Root departed, having put on 104 for the third wicket with Bethell.
The greatest run-getter for England was trapped LBW while trying to sweep left-arm spinner Mitchell Santner.
Having been given not out, it was successfully reviewed by New Zealand, as ball tracking showed it would have actually smacked into middle stump.
It left Root on 28 runs short of becoming the 5th player ever to score 13,000 Test runs at just 33 years old.
Brook, who made match-winning centuries in both of the first two Tests, fell short again at Seddon Park, nicked behind off a sharply rising Will O’Rourke delivery.
The lefty Bethell flowed in his innings, connecting with 13 fours and a six, before he swung at a wide Southee delivery to be caught at deep point.
Ollie Pope was bowled attempting to reverse scoop pacer Matt Henry, and Gus Atkinson’s high octane 43 came to an end when he was caught in the deep off Santner.
Matthew Potts and Brydon Carse were expensive and fell similarly, looking to strike Santner out of the ground.
All-rounder Santner justified his recall by taking 4-85 to finish with seven wickets in the match, alongside scores of 76 and 49 with the bat.
