Sports Desk
WELLINGTON: New Zealand clinched a dramatic one-run victory against England on the final day of the second Test in Wellington, becoming only the fourth team ever to win a Test match after being made to follow.
Resuming with 210 runs still needed to win, the visitors were left in disarray after being losing five wickets for only 80 on the back of losing four quick wickets inside just the first 10 overs of the day at Basin Reserve.
Ben Stokes and Joe Root made a joint attempt to put on a sixth-wicket stand of 121 which got the tourists on track, but they both returned to the pavillion in the afternoon session soon after each, leaving England seven down with 56 still required.
Neil Wagner’s 4-62 played a decisive role in swinging the match in favour of the hosts. The seamer claimed the vital final wicket of James Anderson, preventing the last man in for England becoming an unlikely batting hero.
Rare moment in Test history
Earlier, New Zealand had fought back to set a 258-run target for an attacking England, but the tourists were all out for 256 as a gripping two-Test series finished 1-1. It only happened for the second time in Test cricket that a side won by a single run, matching the West Indies team who defeated Australia by the same wafer-thin margin at Adelaide in 1993.
