Harry Brook gave another exhibition of what an incredible batting talent he is when he hit an outrageous six on the offside via his backfoot during the ENG vs NZ 2nd Test.
The England vs New Zealand 2nd Test at the Kennington Oval, London, has rolled onto an exciting position. Sans captain Ben Stokes and fast bowler Gus Atkinson, England, led by interim skipper Joe Root, won the toss and elected to field first.
At stumps on day 1, England had a stronghold over the Test as the Kiwis were in a pickle at 291/7. However, Glenn Phillips launched a counter-attack on the morning of day 2, forming a vital partnership of 87(95) for the 8th wicket with Kyle Jamieson.
That stand allowed Phillips to raise his maiden Test century and eventually helped New Zealand to reach near 400. The visitors got bundled out for 391.
For England, interestingly, part-time spinner Jacob Bethell had the best bowling figures of 3/26, with the four pacers sharing the rest of the seven scalps.
England’s reply was sharp as Ben Duckett rattled 36 runs off 25 balls, but the left-hander unfortunately got run out. His opening partner, Emilio Gay, reached a sedate fifty but was dismissed soon after attaining the milestone. Bethell scored only 9 runs, while Root managed 46.
Hopes were high from Brook to bat for a long period of time in the absence of Stokes. Brook batted in his typical aggressive manner, looking to put the pressure back on New Zealand.
He unleashed a sensational six off fast bowler William O’Rourke that left everyone, including the commentators and the bowler, stunned, with the fans gushing over his sizzling shot.
On this particular delivery, Brook had taken a slight preemptive front-foot press. The ball from O’Rourke pitched on a good length well outside the off-stump, but it was angled into the right-hander.
This meant that Brook didn’t have enough room, and the ball wasn’t short enough for a cut stroke. However, the talent and genius of Brook came to the fore as he quickly shifted his weight on his back foot.
With his incredible judgment of length and his amazing gift of timing, Brook rocked back, opened the face of his bat, and carved it over backward point for a six. It was marvelous. It was simply jaw-dropping. Commentator Simon Doull was astonished as he simply praised, “Oh, WOW. Extraordinary.”
ENG vs NZ: [Watch] Harry Brook Hits An Unbelievable Backfoot Six Over Point
Brook, however, couldn’t sustain his innings for long and was trapped lbw by Matt Henry for 24 runs off 32 balls, a brief stay that included two fours and this magnificent six.
At the time of writing, debutants James Rew and Jordan Cox are rebuilding England through their unbeaten partnership of 39 (67), with England at 216/5, trailing by 175 more runs.
Earlier, England had won the first Test of the series at Lord’s by 115 runs. Post that, Stokes and Atkinson came under scrutiny for their involvement in a scuffle in a nightclub in Chelsea, and the duo was suspended for this Test match. Meanwhile, Kane Williamson announced his retirement from international cricket ahead of the second Test.
Get the Latest Cricket Updates at IceCric.News. Also, Follow Our Social Media for live updates on Facebook and Instagram.
