Joe Root steered England to a brilliant five wicket win to kick off Ben Stokes’ new era in style.
Just as Stokes had been his right hand man, delivering the goods throughout Root’s own reign, the 31-year-old repaid the favour at the very first time of asking to make it an extra special first Test of the summer.
Fittingly it was Root who pulled the winning runs away to the leg side boundary to finish 115 not out as England chased down the 277 target with wicket-keeper Ben Foakes the perfect foil at the other end.
The pair added an unbroken 120 run partnership to get the side over the line, and with just 13.5 overs used on the fourth morning to gather the 61 runs they needed, fans in the ground were given an extra bonus with the new that it qualified them for a full refund on their tickets with less than 15 overs bowled.
The bond between Root and Stokes is as strong as any in the game and the new England skipper was on his feet applauding and lauding his mate as he became just the 14th man to score 10,000 Test runs.
And just like so many of his runs the timing couldn’t have been any sweeter as the landmark was match with the moment he reached his 26th Test hundred.
Root has been closing in on Sir Alastair Cook’s batting records from the moment he announced himself on debut in Nagpur in 2012, so how fitting that the pair now share the record as the youngest to reach the five figure tally aged 31 and 157 days.
It is surely only a matter of time before Root goes on to claim the overall England runs record for himself, and he will hope that it goes hand in hand with yet more team success. After all, both Root and Stokes have only ever been interested in the success of the collective rather than the personal milestones, no matter how grand.
They had laid the platform for this victory on Saturday with a partnership of 90 that initially relied on a touch of luck when Stokes was bowled off a no-ball, but their skill thereafter was to the fore.
And even when Stokes was removed by the impressive Kyle Jamieson, Foakes stepped into the breach with the same positive intent and played a brilliant hand of his own. Arriving on a mizzly, overcast fourth morning, the challenge was there for Foakes to try and stick with Root for as long as possible, and he never wavered.
Just one breakthrough could have opened the floodgates, but it was a morning where everything went England’s way. From the rebuffed requests from Kane Williamson to the umpire’s to change the soft and squidgy ball, to the inside edge that almost bowled Root, but instead went to the ropes for four more.
The hundred partnership between Root and Foakes arrived in the next over as yet another body blow that sent the New Zealanders reeling. They had put up a terrific fight as befits the World Test Champions, but they had arrived on these shores in dribs and drabs and had no form to speak of going into the game.
Test cricket might be seen as the pinnacle of the sport by the players, but the IPL pays a large portion of the bills these days so something has to give. We can expect the Blackcaps to be better at Trent Bridge for their run out here at Lord’s, but they will now have to cope with an England side with momentum and confidence.
It is one thing for Brendon McCullum and Stokes to talk a good game and fill their players with positive thoughts off the field. It is quite another for those players to execute the game plan and earn the rewards for themselves.
The confidence they will gain from securing a first Test win of the year is something no slogan or tubthumping can match.
