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The English side's training sessions for a warm, arid T20 World Cup in the subcontinent in February led them on midweek to a cool, drizzly New Zealand's largest city, where they were compelled to hold the final practice run ahead of their third game against the Kiwis indoors. It is not always obvious what purpose these bilateral series fulfill, what useful lessons could possibly be gained – but on this occasion, for at least a squad member, that is not an issue.

The Batter's New Role: From Opener to Lower Down

The cricketer says he is “continuing to develop”, and if it is the type of statement often repeated even by athletes who have long since scaled the peak of their game, in his situation it is certainly accurate. After building his name as a top-order batter, mostly as an starting player, Banton suddenly finds himself a completely unfamiliar position, batting at five or six. “I didn't have too many discussions,” he said. “They simply brought me back into the team and told, ‘Your role will be in the middle order now.’”

Prior to returning in June, the vast majority of Banton’s 162 professional T20 appearances had been as an starting batsman, another 8% at No3 and the remaining handful – but for seven balls at seventh spot in a T20 Blast game eight years ago – at No 4. If England plan to keep him in this altered role he requires every possible opportunity to become accustomed to it, and he has figured out one thing: “Batting in the middle order,” he concluded, “is a lot harder than starting the innings.”

Mixed Results in New Zealand

The player noted that “sometimes where it comes off and it looks great and on other occasions where it fails”, and the first two games of the tour in the host nation have featured both outcomes. In the first, he lasted a few deliveries and made nine runs before getting out to long-on; in the second, he faced 12 deliveries, hit runs, and finished unbeaten.

Reflections on Comeback and Development

This tour has witnessed Banton return to the nation in which he made his international debut in late 2019. Since then, he drifted back out of the side, made a brief return in 2022 and then passed more than three years in the sidelines before coming back for the new captain's initial match as England captain. “During the journey, it was weird,” he said. “Time has passed when I started internationally. Seems a lot has happened in that time. I’ve learned a lot about myself. The period after I got dropped from England was a difficult phase for me. I had a two- to three-year period where I was finding my way.”

Backing from Coaching Staff

Currently, he has been assigned something new to work out. Banton is thankful to have been offered a return, and also for Brendon McCullum’s skill to put him at ease while he figures out how best to grasp it. “Baz came up to me before [the recent game] and said, ‘Head out and play your natural game.’ It’s nice to have that freedom,” Banton said. “I realize it’s just a brief comment from the staff, but it gives me the support that if it doesn't work, it’s not the end of the world. It’s something so small but for me it’s, ‘Alright, I’ve got the backing from the head coach and I can step up and perform.’”

Venue Change and Squad Decisions

Following the initial matches of the contest at Christchurch’s Hagley Park, a venue with expansive playing area, England 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 shortest in the sport. With uncertain weather and an unfamiliar venue they have dropped their recent habit of announcing their team two days in advance while they work out if their preferred team here will be the identical as the side that started the earlier fixtures.

Upcoming Changes for One-Day Matches

Next, they move to the coastal town and shift attention to one-day internationals, with a slightly amended team: Jordan Cox, Zak Crawley and Phil Salt are omitted, while Jofra Archer, Ben Duckett, Joe Root and Jamie Smith join the squad. Most newcomers arrived in the city on Wednesday but the timing of the bowler's Test match buildup implies he will follow later, travelling with two fellow bowlers, fast bowlers who are also building towards the longer format in Australia but are not in the limited-overs team. As a result Archer will miss the opening game at Bay Oval, the stadium where he was subjected to abuse on his sole prior visit, in 2019.