Here is the final mini-session analysis for the second test between England and New Zealand at Headingley, Leeds, EnglandA mini-session is (normally) half a session, either between the start of the session and the drinks break or the drinks break and the end of the session. Occasionally a long session will have 3 mini-sessions where it will be broken up with 2 drinks breaks.
| Mini-Session | Score | Winner |
| 2-1a | England 32/1 off 14 | New Zealand |
| 2-1b | England 35/2 off 12 | New Zealand |
| 2-2a | England 43/0 off 16 | England |
| 2-2b | England 68/1 off 16 | England |
| 2-3a | England 70/0 off 17 | England |
| 2-3b | England 89/3 off 19 | New Zealand |
| 3-1a | England 17/3 off 5 | New Zealand |
| 3-1b | New Zealand 62/2 off 18 | England |
| 3-2a | New Zealand 37/4 off 14 | England |
| 3-2b | New Zealand 75/4 off 11.4 | New Zealand |
| 3-3a | England 55/0 off 14 | England |
| 3-3b | England 35/1 off 14 | New Zealand |
| 3-3c | England 26/0 off 13 | draw |
| 4-1a | England 67/0 off 15 | England |
| 4-1b | England 66/2 off 14 | England |
| 4-2a | England 38/2 off 6 | England |
| 4-2b | New Zealand 68/3 off 22 | England |
| 4-3a | New Zealand 72/0 off 20 | New Zealand |
| 4-3b | New Zealand 18/3 off 12.4 | England |
| 4-1b | New Zealand 61/2 off 10.5 | England |
| 4-2a | New Zealand 1/2 off 11 | England |
Final update, click here
England win the mini-session count 13 - 7
Stumps, Day 4: England lead the mini-session count 11-7
New Zealand's lack of spin, and lack of ability against spin has shown through in this test clearly. Paul Wiseman has been taken on as New Zealand's spin coach, and it's possibly the most important cricket role in the country at the moment.
Lots of questions have been asked about Cook's decision-making and how conservative he has been in this test. However I feel that (if he had taken the wider view of looking at the series more than the match) then his decision was sensible, if a little boring. He had New Zealand in a situations where they couldn't possibly win the match, and therefore the series was secured. I personally prefer test captains to treat each match as being worth winning, but I can understand why he decided to use the tactics that he did. - Mykuhl
Lunch, Day 4: England lead the mini-session count 12-7
After some phyrric counter-punching by Southee and Bracewell, New Zealand were saved their blushes by the rain. If it stays wet for the rest of the day, then New Zealand will get a very undeserved draw. - Mykuhl
End of match, Day 4: England win the match and the mini-session count 13-7
It took 11 overs, but England managed to clean up the tail eventually. The standard New Zealand tail end tactic of not taking any singles, so that the batsmen get comfortable with one bowler worked reasonably well, so Cook was forced to change the ends of the bowlers. The decision to change ends had immediate effect with Anderson picking up the 10th wicket for the second innings in succession. - Mykuhl
How do you decide has won each mini session?
ReplyDeleteThere is a formula that combines runs scored, wickets taken, overs bowled and the nature of the wicket that was taken (ie wicket number 3 is worth more than wicket number 9).
DeleteOccasionally I decide that the formula is not correct, especially when the match is setup in a way that means that players are aiming for different things than normal. For example I gave 4-1b to England despite New Zealand scoring 61 runs in less than 11 overs, and only losing two tail-enders. In the context of the match, England needed wickets, and runs were irrelevant. Two wickets in 10.5 overs represented a good hour for England.