• By JE Sports Desk
  • Tue, 28 Feb 2023 08:37 AM (IST)
  • Source:JND

Cricket fans were served with a test match 'special' as host New Zealand beat England by 1 run on Day 5 here in Wellington. It was a classic case of 'snatching victory from the jaws of defeat' as New Zealand captain Tim Southee and Neil Wagner bowled a masterclass in the final overs to deny England a 2-0 win.

It is noteworthy that England required 210 runs more with 9 wickets remaining at the start of Day 5. The Ben Stokes-led side got off to a disastrous start as they lost half their side at the score of 80. However, former England captain Joe Root played an immaculate knock (95 off 113) to stabilize the side in the chase but it was not enough. 

Check out the winning moment here:

Stokes (33) and Ben Foakes (35) also played their part in the chase but aggressive bowling from the pair of Southee-Wagner made England falter in the end as they lost remaining 5 wickets in just 55 runs. With this win, New Zealand drew a hard fought series 1-1 against a tough English side.

New Zealand joined three other teams to have won a Test match after being forced to follow on, with the most recent prior to this clash coming back in 2001 when India clinched an unlikely win against Australia in Kolkata.

The Kiwis' winning margin of one-run is just the second time in the history of Test cricket that a match has been decided by that narrow margin, with the only other occurrence coming in 1993 when the West Indies pulled off a similar triumph over Australia in Adelaide.

The match was not part of the current World Test Championship period, with both New Zealand and England already out of contention of reaching June's final.