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The English side's training sessions for a warm, arid T20 World Cup in the subcontinent in the coming month brought them on Wednesday to a chilly, rainy New Zealand's largest city, where they were forced to conduct the final training session ahead of their third game against New Zealand inside. The purpose isn't always clear what role these bilateral series serve, what useful lessons could possibly be gained – but on this instance, for at least a squad member, that is no concern.

The Batter's New Role: From Opener to Middle Order

Tom Banton says he is “continuing to develop”, and if it is the kind of line often repeated even by players who have already reached the pinnacle of their game, in his case it is undeniably true. After forging his reputation as a frontline hitter, primarily as an starting player, Banton now occupies a totally new role, coming in at the middle order. “I didn't have too many discussions,” he said. “I just got brought me back into the squad and told, ‘Your role will be in the lower batting lineup now.’”

Prior to returning in June, 87% of Banton’s over 160 senior T20 innings had been as an opener, another 8% at No3 and the rest – but for a brief stint at No 7 in a domestic T20 game eight years ago – at fourth place. If England intend to retain him in this altered role he needs every chance to get used to it, and he has already worked out a key point: “Playing down the order,” he concluded, “is a lot harder than opening.”

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 winter in New Zealand have featured one of each. In the first, he lasted a few deliveries and scored a low score before getting out to the deep fielder; in the next game, he faced a dozen balls, hit runs, and ended the innings unbeaten.

Reflections on Return and Growth

This tour has witnessed Banton come back to the country in which he made his international debut in late 2019. After that, he drifted back out of the team, made a brief return in 2022 and then passed a long period in the sidelines before coming back for the new captain's initial match as skipper. “On the flight over, it was weird,” he said. “It was six years ago when I started internationally. Seems a lot has happened in that time. I've discovered a lot about me. The few years after I got dropped from the national team was a difficult phase for me. I had a couple of years period where I was finding my way.”

Support from Coaching Staff

Currently, he has been given something new to tackle. Banton is thankful to have been given another chance, and also for the coach's skill to put him at ease while he works out how best to seize the opportunity. “The coach came up to me before [Monday’s second T20] and said, ‘Go out and express yourself.’ It’s nice to have that liberty,” Banton said. “I know it’s just a brief comment from the staff, but it provides the backing that if it doesn’t come off, it’s not a disaster. It is so minor but for me it’s, ‘Alright, I’ve got the backing from the manager and I can step up and do it.’”

Venue Change and Squad Decisions

Following the initial matches of the contest at the South Island ground, a venue with unusually long boundaries, the visitors complete it on Thursday at the Auckland arena, a multi-use sports facility where the field edge at a short distance is among the shortest in the sport. With uncertain weather and an unfamiliar venue they have abandoned their recent habit of revealing their team two days in advance while they work out if their ideal XI here will be the identical as the side that started the earlier fixtures.

Squad Adjustments for ODI Series

Next, they move to Mount Maunganui and turn focus to ODIs, with a slightly amended team: three players are omitted, while Jofra Archer, Ben Duckett, Joe Root and Jamie Smith join the squad. Most newcomers landed in Auckland on Wednesday but the scheduling of Archer’s Test match buildup means he will follow later, flying with two fellow bowlers, two seamers who are also preparing for the longer format in Australia but are excluded from the limited-overs team. As a result Archer will be absent for the first match at Bay Oval, the stadium where he was racially abused on his sole prior visit, in 2019.