‘We are behind the eight-ball a bit’ – de Grandhomme

Colin de Grandhomme has been in the midst of a great run of form with the bat in recent times, and added to his numbers in uncharacteristically patient fashion on the second day of the Christchurch Test against England on Saturday 31 March.

Walking in with New Zealand in trouble at 36/5, in response to England’s 307, de Grandhomme gave BJ Watling company as the two resuscitated the innings, adding 142 runs together. They brought the home team back into the contest before de Grandhomme was dismissed late on the day for 72, scored off 151 deliveries.

De Grandhomme now has four 50-plus scores in Test cricket, including a century, and all of which have come in his last four-and-a-half Tests.

“I've just got more confident in myself and I am enjoying it. It's what I've worked on in the last few weeks with the coaches. It’s very pleasing to do it for long periods – mentally, it is a bit tough,” said de Grandhomme, who is known for his big hitting but buckled down on Saturday after starting with a series of aggressive shots.

Importantly from New Zealand’s point of view, de Grandhomme gave Watling, known for his patient innings building, exactly the kind of support the wicket-keeper batsman needed.

“Watling has always been a gritty, determined, strong character who never gives it away cheaply – the sort that New Zealand want in battle,” said Stuart Broad, who picked up the wickets of Tom Latham, Ross Taylor and Henry Nicholls early before returning to account for de Grandhomme. Broad ended the day with 4/38.

“They saw off the harder ball really well and between 45-70 overs they upped the scoring rate. We had a chat at tea and said there would be periods of time where the pitch goes flat, can we keep it under three an over, and when we get our breakthrough we could knock them over.

“Watling didn't give a chance, they played exceptionally well, but we held them well to still be ahead of the game because de Grandhomme is someone you could get 100 off 90 balls.”

De Grandhomme agreed with Broad’s assessment that England, behind 1-0 in the two-Test series, were at an advantage with New Zealand still 115 runs behind with just four first-innings wickets in hand. “We are behind the eight-ball a bit. Hopefully tomorrow we can come out and get as close as possible or even past it,” he said.