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England's training sessions for a hot, dry T20 World Cup in India in February led them on Wednesday to a cool, drizzly New Zealand's largest city, where they were forced to conduct the last practice run before their next match against New Zealand inside. The purpose isn't always clear what role these two-team contests serve, what useful lessons could possibly be gained – but on this occasion, for at least one of the players, that is not an issue.

Tom Banton's New Role: 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 athletes who have long since scaled the pinnacle of their sport, in his situation it is undeniably true. After forging his reputation as a frontline hitter, mostly as an opener, Banton suddenly finds himself 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 squad and informed me, ‘Your role will be in the lower batting lineup now.’”

Prior to returning in the summer, 87% of Banton’s 162 senior T20 innings had been as an opener, a further portion at third position and the rest – but for a brief stint at seventh spot in a domestic T20 game eight years ago – at fourth place. If the team plan to retain 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 concluded, “is a lot harder than starting the innings.”

Mixed Results in the Tour

Banton said that “there’s going to be times where it comes off and it looks great and on other occasions where it fails”, and the first two games of the winter in New Zealand have featured both outcomes. In the opener, he lasted nine balls and scored a low score before getting out to the deep fielder; in the next game, he faced 12 deliveries, scored 29, and ended the innings unbeaten.

Thoughts on Comeback and Development

This tour has witnessed Banton return to the country in which he first played for his country in November 2019. After that, he moved away of the side, had a short comeback in 2022 and then passed more than three years in the wilderness before coming back for Harry Brook’s first T20 as skipper. “During the journey, it was strange,” he said. “It was six years ago when I started internationally. It feels like a lot has occurred in that time. I've discovered a lot about myself. The few years after I got dropped from the national team was a difficult phase for me. I had a two- to three-year period where I was working myself out.”

Backing from Team Management

Currently, he has been given something new to work out. Banton is thankful to have been given another chance, and also for the coach's skill to make him comfortable while he works out how best to seize the opportunity. “Baz came up to me before [the recent game] and said, ‘Go out and express yourself.’ It’s nice to have that freedom,” Banton said. “I know it’s just a brief comment from the staff, but it gives me the backing that if it doesn't work, it’s not the end of the world. It’s something so minor but for me it’s, ‘Alright, I’ve got the backing from the head coach and I can go out and perform.’”

Venue Change and Team Selection

After playing the first two games of the contest at the South Island ground, a venue with unusually long boundaries, the visitors complete it on Thursday at Eden Park, a dual-purpose rugby and cricket ground where the field edge at a short distance is among the most compact in the sport. With uncertain weather and an new location they have abandoned their usual practice of announcing their lineup two days in advance while they work out if their ideal XI here will be the same as the one that began both previous games.

Upcoming Changes for ODI Series

Next, they move to the coastal town and turn focus to ODIs, with a slightly amended squad: three players drop out, while four others come in. Three of those players landed in the city on the same day but the timing of Archer’s Test match buildup implies he will arrive later, travelling with two fellow bowlers, two seamers who are also preparing for the longer format in Australia but are not in the limited-overs team. As a result Archer will miss the first match at the venue, the stadium where he was subjected to abuse on his sole prior visit, in a few years back.