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A full house at Trent Bridge in Nottingham were treated to a jaw-dropping display on the final day of the second Test between England and New Zealand. Jonny Bairstow played one of his finest knocks, cracking a sensational quickfire century to propel his side to an unforgettable victory.
Bairstow led the chase of 299 by smashing Black Caps bowlers all around the ground. The right-handed batter smacked 136 off just 92 deliveries, which included 14 fours and seven sixes. Bairstow, along with captain Ben Stokes formed a match-winning 179-run partnership for the fifth wicket after England were reduced to 93/4 in 26 overs.
The Yorkshire batter was removed eventually by Trent Boult, but the damage was already done as the hosts needed only 27 runs to win the contest. Stokes (75 not out) and Ben Foakes (12 not out) took their side home inside 50 overs to mark the highest successful Test chase at Trent Bridge.
Brief Score:
England 539 (Joe Root 176, Oliie Pope 145, Alex Lees 67, Ben Foakes 56, Trent Boult 5/106) and 299/5 (Jonny Bairstow 136, Ben Stokes 75*, Alex Lees 44) beat New Zealand 553 (Daryll Mitchell 190, Tom Blundell 106, James Anderson 3/62) and 284 (Daryll Mitchell 62*, Will Young 56, Devon Conway 52, Stuart Broad 3/70) by five wickets.
Here is how Twitter reacted:
Jonny Bairstow, an innings of a lifetime, one of the best counter-attacking 4th innings you will ever see.Well done England , Test Cricket is Best Cricket. #ENGvNZ pic.twitter.com/BV5dVzbIqk
— Virender Sehwag (@virendersehwag) June 14, 2022
June 2021: NZ set Eng 273 in 75 overs. Eng bat out a draw scoring 170/3 (70).
June 2022: NZ set Eng 299 in 72 overs. Eng chase it down in 50 overs!
What changed? Mindset. #ENGvNZ pic.twitter.com/zOMbJMB51I
— Wasim Jaffer (@WasimJaffer14) June 14, 2022
Jonny Bairstow, 136 of the most extraordinary runs. #ENGvNZ pic.twitter.com/4vyYAbebRr
— Adam Collins (@collinsadam) June 14, 2022
This is utterly ridiculous .. Last time I saw this type of drama was in 2019 when Jonny was sat on the balcony watching Ben .. Now Ben has the best seat in the house watching Jonny .. #ENGvNZ
— Michael Vaughan (@MichaelVaughan) June 14, 2022
This has got to be one of the greatest free tickets in the history of sport. What an extraordinary feat from Bairstow and Stokes.
— Richard Osman (@richardosman) June 14, 2022
Incredible from Stokes – he is struggling with some injury, still putting 100% and full length dive – The fighter, Stokes. pic.twitter.com/JWgKJnObdu
— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) June 14, 2022
Unbelievable theatre. Bairstow chasing fastest ever England Test hundred and Stokes on a wonky knee #EngvNZ
— Alison Mitchell (@AlisonMitchell) June 14, 2022
In a test where a team scores big in the 1st innings,it is always vulnerable if the opposition comes close. There isn't enough time for the team batting 4th to get bowled out, so the pressure mounts in the 3rd innings. Hence my feeling after the 2nd innings that England could win
— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) June 14, 2022
Not one Test century in the CricViz database has a higher attacking shot percentage *and* a lower false shot percentage than Jonny Bairstow's today. #ENGvNZ
— The CricViz Analyst (@cricvizanalyst) June 14, 2022
In Jonny Bairstow's three Test hundreds this year, he's come in at 36-4, 48-4 and 56-3 (chasing 299). Decent times to stand up.
— Will Macpherson (@willis_macp) June 14, 2022
Ben Stokes and Jonny Bairstow's partnership is worth 179 in exactly 20 overs – which is more than England have made four of the last five times they've batted first in a T20 international
— Matt Roller (@mroller98) June 14, 2022
Jonny Bairstow (136 off 92 balls in a chase of 299) played one of the greatest innings ever seen in cricket. To see such inns sometimes you need to back a talent despite failures. For context, Bairstow's career average as a specialist batter is only 31.09 after 36 Tests. #EngvNZ
— Mazher Arshad (@MazherArshad) June 14, 2022
Sure Jonny Bairstow’s hit one of the all-time tonnes in Test cricket history, but remember Daryl Mitchell has been able to say “fucks sake, boys!” in consecutive Tests after back-to-back tonnes, the latest a Daddy, followed by a liiiiittle red inker in the 2nd dig. #ENGvNZ
— Sam Perry (@sjjperry) June 14, 2022
