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England's preparations for a warm, arid T20 World Cup in the subcontinent in the coming month brought them on midweek to a cool, drizzly Auckland, where they were compelled to hold the last training session before their next match against the Kiwis inside. The purpose isn't always clear what role these bilateral series serve, what useful lessons could possibly be learned – but on this instance, for at least a squad member, that is no concern.

The Batter's New Role: From Opener to Middle Order

Tom Banton says he is “still learning now”, and if it is the type of statement regularly trotted out even by athletes who have long since scaled the peak of their game, in his case it is undeniably true. After forging his reputation as a top-order batter, primarily as an starting player, Banton suddenly finds himself a completely unfamiliar position, coming in at five or six. “I didn't have too many conversations,” he said. “They simply brought me back into the team and told, ‘Your role will be in the middle order now.’”

Before his recall in the summer, the vast majority of Banton’s over 160 professional T20 appearances had been as an starting batsman, a further portion at No3 and the remaining handful – but for a brief stint at seventh spot in a T20 Blast game eight years ago – at No 4. If England intend to keep him in this new position he requires every chance to become accustomed to it, and he has figured out one thing: “Playing down the order,” he concluded, “is a much tougher than starting the innings.”

Mixed Results in the Tour

Banton said that “sometimes where it comes off and it appears brilliant and on other occasions where it doesn’t”, and the initial matches of the tour in New Zealand have seen both outcomes. In the opener, he faced a few deliveries and made a low score before holing out to the deep fielder; in the next game, he faced a dozen balls, scored 29, and finished unbeaten.

Reflections on Comeback and Growth

The current series has witnessed Banton come back to the country in which he made his international debut in late 2019. Since then, he moved away of the side, made a brief return in 2022 and then passed more than three years in the wilderness before coming back for Harry Brook’s initial match as England captain. “During the journey, it was strange,” he said. “Time has passed when I made my debut. It feels like a lot has occurred in that period. I’ve learned a lot about me. The few years after I got dropped from England was a difficult phase for me. I had a couple of years stretch where I was finding my way.”

Backing from Team Management

And now, he has been given a fresh challenge to tackle. Banton is grateful to have been given another chance, and also for the coach's skill to make him comfortable while he figures out how best to grasp it. “Baz approached me before [the recent game] and said, ‘Go out and express yourself.’ It's reassuring to have that liberty,” Banton said. “I know it’s only a small thing someone says, but it gives me the support that if it doesn't work, it’s not the end of the world. It’s something so minor but for me it’s, ‘OK, I’ve got the backing from the head coach and I can step up and perform.’”

Shift in Location and Squad Decisions

After playing the initial matches of the series at the South Island ground, a venue with expansive playing area, the visitors complete it on Thursday at Eden Park, a multi-use sports facility where the straight boundary at a short distance is among the most compact in the sport. With uncertain weather and an new location they have dropped their recent habit of revealing their lineup ahead of time while they determine if their preferred team for this match will be the identical as the side that began the earlier fixtures.

Squad Adjustments for One-Day Matches

Next, they move to the coastal town and shift attention to one-day internationals, with a slightly amended team: Jordan Cox, Zak Crawley and Phil Salt drop out, while Jofra Archer, Ben Duckett, Joe Root and Jamie Smith join the squad. Three of those players arrived in the city on the same day but the scheduling of the bowler's Test match buildup means he will follow later, flying with Mark Wood and Josh Tongue, fast bowlers who are also preparing for the longer format in Australia but are excluded from the white-ball squad. As a result he will be absent for the first match at the venue, the stadium where he was racially abused on his only previous appearance, in 2019.