Teams:

England (Playing XI): Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Jacob Bethell, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ollie Pope(w), Ben Stokes(c), Chris Woakes, Gus Atkinson, Brydon Carse, Shoaib Bashir

New Zealand (Playing XI): Tom Latham(c), Devon Conway, Kane Williamson, Rachin Ravindra, Daryl Mitchell, Tom Blundell(w), Glenn Phillips, Nathan Smith, Matt Henry, Tim Southee, William ORourke

New Zealand have won the toss and have opted to field

There is a green shade to the pitch and teams have opted to field first in the last five Test matches here. Interestingly though, 383 was the lowest first innings score in 4 of those 5 games. Blades will be flashing in counterattack, ball will talk, audacity will be on display. This could be really spicy!

On the field, you expect exciting cricket. While New Zealand will hope their batting unit picks up, they would definitely want their catching to improve - 8 chances put down in the first Test, including 5 off Harry Brook, who put on a special show and exhibited why he is rated so highly.

England don't have a chance of qualifying to the WTC final and they also dented New Zealand's hopes after a resounding 9-wicket in Christchurch last week. This after the hosts came from a historic 3-0 cleansweep in India. Points being docked for slow overrates was the big off-field talking point in the build-up to this test. This further complicates NZ's path to Lord's. Stokes wasn't pleased with the ruling as the game finished with a day to spare and called for a relook at the system in place for assessment.

Speaking of Harmison, the former England cricketer yesterday presented the caps to the New Zealand players after the hosts named an unchanged XI. The visitors too haven't made any changes.

10:00 Local Time, 21:00 GMT, 02:30 IST: Welcome to a lovely day at the Basin Reserve! The last time these two sides met here James Anderson was caught down leg - bit similar to Michael Kasprowicz off Steve Harmison at the Edgbaston in the 2005 Ashes - but England were on the losing side this time by a solitary run. Back then, in 2023, they missed a great chance of winning a Test series on New Zealand soil for the first time since 2008. Can they do it this time?

Teams:

New Zealand (Playing XI): Tom Latham(c), Devon Conway, Kane Williamson, Rachin Ravindra, Daryl Mitchell, Tom Blundell(w), Glenn Phillips, Nathan Smith, Matt Henry, Tim Southee, William ORourke

England (Playing XI): Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Jacob Bethell, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ollie Pope(w), Ben Stokes(c), Chris Woakes, Gus Atkinson, Brydon Carse, Shoaib Bashir

England (Playing XI): Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Jacob Bethell, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ollie Pope(w), Ben Stokes(c), Chris Woakes, Gus Atkinson, Brydon Carse, Shoaib Bashir

Preview

It was only a little over 21 months ago when New Zealand won by the barest of margins in a thrilling Test against England by one run in Wellington. It helped the hosts level the two-match series in 2023 at 1-1 after England had taken the spoils in Mount Maunganui. The hosts come into this Test in a similar position having been comfortably beaten by the same opposition in Christchurch last week.

And like 21 months ago, the hosts would like to make a statement once again thereby denting England's chances of winning their first series in New Zealand since 2008.

Both teams were docked three points for a slow over-rate in the first Test much to Ben Stokes' displeasure. As a result, and in the grander scheme of things, New Zealand slipped to fifth from fourth place in the race for a berth in the World Test Championship final to be held next year. It leaves them requiring to win the series to still have a chance of making the final.

New Zealand will have much to ponder about in terms of their batting and fielding. It could be a crucial Test for the likes of Devon Conway and Tom Blundell, who are averaging 23.43 and 15.88 with the bat respectively in 2024. The hosts also dropped eight catches against England and gave Harry Brook five lives during his 171. However, a major positive would be how Kane Williamson seamlessly slotted back into their XI, and was their best batter with two half-centuries at the Hagley Oval. Interestingly, New Zealand have won only 23 Tests out of 68 matches at the Basin Reserve, having lost 21 and drawn 24 games.

England will look to bury the ghosts of the past in Wellington following their all-round performance in Christchurch. Brook towered past the other batters with a big hundred while Brydon Carse picked up his maiden ten-wicket haul in a match in Tests. Stokes, Ollie Pope and debutant Jacob Bethell chipped in with half-centuries as well in a statement win.

Will the visitors create history in the New Zealand capital or can the hosts bounce back and conjure up another victory just like they did in 2023?

When: December 6 to December 10, 2024; 11:00am Local Time | 10pm GMT (Dec 5) | 3:30am IST

Where: Basin Reserve, Wellington

What to expect: Apart from scattered showers in the afternoon on the third day, the weather in Wellington is expected to be bright and sunny. The 22-yards is expected to be a green carpet with an even covering of grass. The captain who wins the toss will, in all likelihood, bowl first to take advantage of the pace-friendly conditions on offer. No captain has elected to bat first at the Basin Reserve since 2010.

Team news

New Zealand: The hosts have decided to continue with the same XI as the first Test with Glenn Phillips and Rachin Ravindra being the only spin options for them.

Probable XI: Devon Conway, Tom Latham (C), Kane Williamson, Rachin Ravindra, Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, Tom Blundell (wk), Nathan Smith , Tim Southee, Matt Henry, Will O'Rourke

England: Similar to New Zealand, the visitors remain unchanged for the second Test.

Confirmed XI: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Jacob Bethell, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ollie Pope (wk), Ben Stokes (C), Chris Woakes, Gus Atkinson, Brydon Carse, Shoaib Bashir

What they said:

"Certainly a challenge to get through those 15 overs now. In terms of, you know, if the ball is flying to the boundary a little bit more then usual, we've seen in the sub-continent where a lot of spin is used where that isn't necessarily an issue. We know from our point of view, we've got to be better and we'll certainly be trying our best throughout this game. But maybe that's something that does need to be reviewed because we certainly try our best, and no team wants to be behind in the over-rate but it certainly is a challenge." -Tom Latham on Ben Stokes' comments regarding the over-rates

Squads:

England Squad: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Jacob Bethell, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ollie Pope(w), Ben Stokes(c), Chris Woakes, Gus Atkinson, Brydon Carse, Shoaib Bashir, Rehan Ahmed, Oliver Robinson, Matthew Potts, Jack Leach, Olly Stone

New Zealand Squad: Tom Latham(c), Devon Conway, Kane Williamson, Rachin Ravindra, Daryl Mitchell, Tom Blundell(w), Glenn Phillips, Nathan Smith, Matt Henry, Tim Southee, William ORourke, Jacob Duffy, Will Young