Latham hails New Zealand’s composure as England’s ‘chaos cricket’ backfires

Tom Latham praised New Zealand’s bravery and composure after his side sealed a historic 2-1 Test series win over England cricket team, overcoming injuries, retirements, and England’s aggressive “chaos” tactics to clinch victory at Trent Bridge.

The 160-run win in the third Test made New Zealand national cricket team the first team ever to come from 1-0 down and win a three-Test series in England.

For Latham, this marks another major overseas achievement after New Zealand’s remarkable 3-0 series sweep in India in 2024, which ended India’s 12-year unbeaten home streak.

Despite entering the decider with multiple setbacks, New Zealand held firm:

• Matt Henry ruled out (calf injury) after 11 wickets in 2nd Test
• Glenn Phillips sidelined (side strain)
• Kyle Jamieson rested for workload
• Blair Tickner suffered concussion during match
• Will O'Rourke battled finger and hamstring issues

Yet replacements stepped up brilliantly. Zak Foulkes came in as concussion substitute and delivered 3/35, while Mitchell Santner took the final wicket to seal the series.

Latham highlighted the team’s mental strength.“What I’m most proud of is the way this group stuck to what we wanted to do. We were brave for long enough and stayed strong in key moments.”

Mitchell’s old-school resistance breaks England

One of the defining performances came from Daryl Mitchell, whose unbeaten century in the third innings crushed England’s hopes.

Mitchell batted for over 6.5 hours, facing 241 balls and absorbing 17 blows to body and gloves, grinding England down with classic Test-match discipline.

His knock pushed the target to 373, placing the chase beyond England’s reach.

England’s chaos approach misfires

England, led by retiring captain Ben Stokes, attempted one final ultra-aggressive chase.

Stokes stunned everyone by:

• Bowling an extended spell
• Opening the batting himself
• Smashing 30 off 20 balls

England also used an unusual field setup with boundary riders and no slips while attacking from ball one.

Even New Zealand players were heard on stump mic asking:“What are they doing?!”

Latham admitted England’s approach caught them off guard.“It surprised us a little, if I’m being honest.”

But instead of panicking, New Zealand adjusted calmly and stuck to their plans, claiming four crucial wickets on day four, effectively ending the contest.

WTC boost for New Zealand

New Zealand now sit third in the ICC World Test Championship standings behind Australia national cricket team and South Africa national cricket team.

With challenging series against India and Australia ahead, the road to another WTC final remains difficult—but under Latham, New Zealand are proving they can thrive anywhere.