England spinner Shoaib Bashir took four wickets as the tourists kept New Zealand in check on the first day of the first Test at the Hagley Oval in Christchurch.
The tourists won the toss and elected to field on a green surface, but faced a difficult task with an inspired Kane Williamson (93) top-scoring for the hosts as they finished on 319-8.
It was New Zealand who had the better of the play in the opening two sessions of the day, coming out after tea on 227-4.
But Williamson's wicket, caught off Gus Atkinson, triggered a wobble for the Kiwis, which saw three wickets fall for just 25 runs.
Bashir's deliveries then saw Tom Blundell (17) caught in the off-side and Nathan Smith (three) at leg slip. He also ended a 46-run stand between Glenn Phillips (41*) and Matt Henry (18), with the latter caught, as he added to his earlier wicket of Rachin Ravindra (34).
Frustratingly for England, Phillips had initially been dropped by captain Ben Stokes on a duck and also successfully overturned a dismissal.
But this was a day to celebrate for Bashir, who accredited those above him for his level of performance.
"I wasn't expecting to bowl 20-odd overs and take four wickets on day one, but I knew I had a job to do. Stokesy and Baz [head coach Brendon McCullum] back me 100 per cent and that brings the best out in me," he told Sky Sports
"If I bowl a bad ball there's nothing really, Ben just looks at me and smiles. Even that just gives me so much belief, because I know I can still bowl my best ball. All I was thinking about was trying to take a wicket or create an opportunity.
"I'm not perfect, every day I feel I could play better. But I feel I've developed bowling at some of the best in the world."
Data debrief: Bashir scales new heights
Only Indian bowlers Jasprit Bumrah (49) and Ravichandran Ashwin (46) have more wickets than the 45 that Bashir has claimed this year.
Having been elevated above Jack Leach as England's first-choice spinner, he has bowled 2,745 Test deliveries in 2024 – over 500 more than the next-busiest bowler in Sri Lanka's Prabath Jayasuriya.
Following his performance on day one in Christchurch, he is just one wicket away from becoming the only spin bowler to ever claim a five-wicket haul at the Hagley Oval.
'We have the players' - Tuchel confident of talent in England squad
Thomas Tuchel believes England have the players and the talent to go far in the 2026 World Cup.
The German will officially take charge of the Three Lions from January 1 but was present at the qualifying draw which took place at UEFA headquarters in Zurich on Friday.
Tuchel is tasked with reaching the World Cup for an eighth consecutive edition, with England reaching the semi-finals and quarter-finals in the previous two under Gareth Southgate.
Asked if he felt he had the players available to win the competition, should they qualify, Tuchel told Sky Sports: "I knew this before and watching the matches, we have the players, the talent and the characteristics to go far. But now, first of all, we have to prove it in the qualifiers.
"It gets closer and closer, the gaps between the big nations and the smaller nations. It closes every tournament.
"It's more difficult to win your games, so we have to show full respect and show our top level from March when it starts."
One of those players is striker Harry Kane, who came under criticism following Euro 2024, in which he scored just three goals, earning him a share of the Golden Boot, amid underwhelming performances on their run to the final.
Kane was a regular fixture for Tuchel after joining Bayern Munich last August and scored 44 goals in all competitions under the 51-year-old, who says the striker will remain as captain.
"There's no need at the moment to look at other options. It's like for Harry, for everyone else as well," he said.
"I admire him, for his quality, for his leadership, for his character. The players decide in the end if they play, or they don't play. It's always like that.
"I'm happy to have this group of players, including Harry, big personalities and quality. The job now is to find and build the best group that people are excited to watch us, that they feel inspired watching this team."
England will face Serbia, Albania, Latvia and Andorra in Group K in a bid to reach the tournament held in the United States, Canada and Mexico, and have never lost against any of those four sides.
"I have huge respect for Serbia and Albania. They can always surprise," Tuchel added.
"They have a strong history of football, of technical football, of emotional crowd and emotional players and emotional groups. They have famous ex-players as coaches so we should be very aware of that.
"England never played Latvia, so this is a new experience for all of us, and then we have Andorra, where we are huge favourites, but we have to qualify. This is the most important thing.
"This is where all the focus goes. There cannot be any other approach than taking it seriously, take it with respect and make it happen before we can dream the dream."
Hendricks ton steers South Africa to series win over Pakistan
Reeza Hendricks plundered 117 as he helped South Africa to a seven-wicket victory over Pakistan in their second T20I, giving them an unassailable 2-0 lead in the series.
After impressive performances from David Miller, who missed this match with a calf injury, and George Linde in the first T20I in Durban, Hendricks took his chance, helping the Proteas surpass their 207 target with three balls left.
Pakistan lost Mohammad Rizwan in the powerplay for just 11 runs, but Saim Ayub, who lasted the entire 20 overs, steadied the ship as he steadily racked up 98 off 57 balls.
Babar Azam (31) and Ifran Khan Niazi (30) pushed them towards their respectable 206-5, though they will feel they could have got more if they had not lost three quick wickets between the 12th and 15th overs.
South Africa got off to a slow start though, with Ryan Rickleton dismissed for just two runs by Jahanad Khan (2-40). However, his fellow opener Hendricks, who scored his first T20I century, soon found his rhythm with Rassie van der Dussen (66 not out).
Pakistan had no answers as they put together a 157-run third-wicket partnership, and though Abbas Afridi finally ended Hendricks' stand in the 18th over, Heinrich Klaasen (eight) stepped in to help get it over the line.
Data Debrief: Record-breaker
Hendricks was by far the stand out for the hosts, hitting seven fours and 10 sixes in his knock, as he claimed his first ton for South Africa in the format.
It was also the 18th time he has racked up a score of 50+ in T20Is, the most for South Africa, surpassing Quinton de Kock's record.
His partnership with Van der Dussen on the third wicket is also a new high for the Proteas, with their 157 runs beating AB de Villers and Richard Levi's tally of 133 in T20Is.
Pakistan contribued to those new records as well though, with 416 the highest match aggregate involving the two teams in this format.
England face Serbia, Albania, Latvia and Andorra in World Cup qualifying
Thomas Tuchel’s England have been placed in Group K alongside Serbia, Albania, Latvia and Andorra in qualification for the 2026 World Cup.
Tuchel officially takes charge of the Three Lions on January 1, and was in attendance for the draw which took place at the UEFA headquarters in Zurich on Friday.
England were in pot one with the top seeds, so they avoided European champions Spain, 2022 World Cup finalists France, as well as Germany and Italy.
The Three Lions do, however, face a reunion with Serbia, who they beat 1-0 in their opening game of Euro 2024, but will have confidence of progressing from their group.
England have never lost against the four sides placed alongside them in Group K, and will be hopeful of qualifying for the World Cup for an eighth consecutive edition.
Elsewhere, Craig Bellamy's Wales were drawn in Group J, where they will face Belgium, North Macedonia, Kazakhstan and Liechtenstein.
Scotland were put in Group C with the Nations League quarter-final losers of Portugal against Denmark, Greece and Belarus.
Northern Ireland were placed in Group A, alongside the Nations League quarter-final winners of Germany versus Italy, Slovakia and Luxembourg.
The games will be played across five international breaks between March and November 2025.
The top team from each of the 12 groups qualifies automatically for the World Cup, which will be held in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
The second-placed teams going into the play-offs, with a total of 16 European teams hopeful of qualifying for the tournament.
World Cup qualifying draw in full:
Group A: Germany or Italy (winner), Slovakia, Northern Ireland, Luxembourg.
Group B: Switzerland, Sweden, Slovenia, Kosovo.
Group C: Portugal or Denmark (loser), Greece, Scotland, Belarus.
Group D: France or Croatia (winner), Ukraine, Iceland, Azerbaijan.
Group E: Spain or Netherlands (winner), Turkiye, Georgia, Bulgaria.
Group F: Portugal or Denmark (winner), Hungary, Republic of Ireland, Armenia.
Group G: Spain or Netherlands (loser), Poland, Finland, Lithuania, Malta.
Group H: Austria, Romania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cyprus, San Marino.
Group I: Germany or Italy (loser), Norway, Israel, Estonia, Moldova.
Group J: Belgium, Wales, North Macedonia, Kazakhstan, Liechtenstein.
Group K: England, Serbia, Albania, Latvia, Andorra.
Group L: France or Croatia (loser), Czechia, Montenegro, Faroe Islands, Gibraltar.
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