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England's preparations for a hot, dry T20 World Cup in India in February brought them on Wednesday to a cool, drizzly Auckland, where they were compelled to hold the last practice run before their third game against the Kiwis inside. It is not always obvious what purpose these bilateral series fulfill, what useful lessons could possibly be learned – but on this occasion, for at least a squad member, that is no concern.

Tom Banton's New Role: Starting Batsman to Middle Order

The cricketer says he is “continuing to develop”, and if it is the type of statement regularly trotted out even by players who have already reached the pinnacle of their game, in his case it is certainly accurate. After building his name as a top-order batter, primarily as an opener, Banton suddenly finds himself a completely unfamiliar role, batting at the middle order. “I didn't have too many conversations,” he said. “They simply brought me back into the team and informed me, ‘Your role will be in the lower batting lineup now.’”

Prior to returning in June, 87% of Banton’s 162 senior T20 innings had been as an opener, another 8% at No3 and the remaining handful – but for seven balls at seventh spot in a T20 Blast game eight years ago – at fourth place. If England intend to keep him in this new position he needs every chance to get used to it, and he has already worked out one thing: “Playing down the order,” he concluded, “is a much tougher than opening.”

Varied Performances in the Tour

Banton said that “there’s going to be times where it works well and it appears brilliant and other times where it fails”, and the first two games of the tour in New Zealand have seen both outcomes. In the first, he lasted nine balls and made nine runs before holing out to the deep fielder; in the second, he faced a dozen balls, hit runs, and finished not out.

Reflections on Comeback and Growth

The current series has witnessed Banton return to the country in which he made his international debut in November 2019. Since then, he moved away of the side, had a short comeback in recently and then spent a long period in the sidelines before returning for Harry Brook’s initial match as skipper. “On the flight over, it was weird,” he said. “It was six years ago when I made my debut. It feels like a lot has happened in that period. I've discovered a lot about me. The few years after I was left out from the national team was a difficult phase for me. I had a couple of years period where I was finding my way.”

Backing from Team Management

Currently, he has been given a fresh challenge to work out. Banton is thankful to have been offered a return, and also for the coach's skill to put him at ease while he works out how best to seize the opportunity. “The coach approached me before [Monday’s second T20] and said, ‘Head 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 support that if it doesn’t come off, it’s not a disaster. It is so small but for me it’s, ‘Alright, I’ve got the approval from the head coach and I can go out and do it.’”

Shift in Location and Team Selection

Following the first two games of the series at the South Island ground, a stadium with expansive playing area, England complete it on the next day at Eden Park, a dual-purpose sports facility where the field edge at a short distance is among the shortest in the sport. With changeable conditions and an new location they have abandoned their recent habit of announcing their lineup two days in advance while they determine if their preferred team for this match will be the same as the side that began both previous games.

Upcoming Changes for ODI Series

Next, they travel to the coastal town and turn focus to one-day internationals, with a somewhat changed squad: three players are omitted, while Jofra Archer, Ben Duckett, Joe Root and Jamie Smith come in. Three of those players landed in Auckland on Wednesday but the scheduling of the bowler's Ashes preparations means he will arrive later, flying with two fellow bowlers, two seamers who are also preparing for the Tests in the away series but are not in the white-ball squad. As a result he will be absent for the first match at the venue, the ground where he was subjected to abuse on his sole prior visit, in 2019.