On Thursday Harry Brook described his team\u2019s preparations for their last ODI series, against South Africa last month, as \u201ca bit of a shambles\u201d, and the same phrase could be used to describe many of their recent performances in the format \u2013 and for that matter a tour of New Zealand that has so far featured one completed T20 and two washouts.<\/p>\n
England\u2019s series against South Africa started less than 48 hours after the Hundred final, the squad assembling at Headingley much as a dripping tap might fill a bath: irritatingly slowly. \u201cI don\u2019t think we even got a training session in together,\u201d Brook recalled. The team\u2019s performance in the opening match<\/a> was as shambolic as had been their assembly.<\/p>\n But the sporting truism is that you\u2019re only as good as your last game and, in their most recent ODI, England scored 414<\/a> against the South Africans in Southampton, and won by 342. \u201cWe can take that game and if we play like that we\u2019re going to be a very, very strong side,\u201d Brook said. \u201cJust take the momentum we got from that game into this series and we\u2019ll be just fine.\u201d With this in mind the team travelled from Auckland to Mount Maunganui, where they play the opening fixture against the Black Caps on Sunday, with an outlook as sunny as \u2013 mercifully \u2013 the weekend weather forecast.<\/p>\n Jamie Smith, Ben Duckett and Joe Root, who have formed England\u2019s top order in all six games since their Champions Trophy campaign ended in group-stage elimination and Jos Buttler\u2019s resignation as captain, arrived in Auckland on Wednesday and are ready to resume their positions. But the absence of Jofra Archer, whose delayed arrival in New Zealand means he will not make his first appearance until Wednesday\u2019s second fixture in Hamilton, could open the door for Luke Wood to make what would be his first List A appearance in two years, his third of this decade and just the seventh of his career.<\/p>\n Harry Brook (left) and New Zealand captain Mitchell Santner shake hands after the abandoned T20 cricket international in Auckland. Photograph: Andrew Cornaga\/AP<\/p>\n \u201cYeah, I don\u2019t think I\u2019ve played an ODI in \u2026 well, I\u2019ve not played a heap,\u201d Wood said. \u201cIt would be nice to continue playing and maybe try to find a similar role to the T20s. I don\u2019t know what the team is going to be but hopefully I\u2019ll keep my spot and get the ball rolling.\u201d<\/p>\n After nearly two years out of the international side Wood, who is 30, has played nine of England\u2019s 11 T20s since Harry Brook became white-ball captain, and is now seeking to further cement his place in the setup.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was tough when I was out of it, and when the call came this summer it was probably a bit of a surprise,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019m not necessarily the youngest player any more so part of me felt the chance had gone, but there\u2019s always that glimmer of hope in the back of your mind. But I did think I was good enough to do it. I\u2019ve tried to treat it differently to last time. Last time I put a lot of pressure on myself to do well, whereas this time I\u2019m just trying to enjoy it.\u201d<\/p>\n The other absentee from what appeared over the summer to be a settled first-choice side is Will Jacks, who broke a finger during the T20 series against South Africa and is still recovering, and focusing on being fit for the Ashes. Liam Dawson and Rehan Ahmed are the available replacements should England want to go into the series with their recent balance of three spin and three seam options.<\/p>\n skip past newsletter promotion<\/a><\/p>\n Subscribe to our cricket newsletter for our writers’ thoughts on the biggest stories and a review of the week\u2019s action<\/p>\n Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain information about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. If you do not have an account, we will create a guest account for you on theguardian.com<\/a> to send you this newsletter. You can complete full registration at any time. For more information about how we use your data see our Privacy Policy<\/a>. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy<\/a> and Terms of Service<\/a> apply.<\/p>\n after newsletter promotion<\/p>\n Quick GuideEngland v New Zealand 1st ODI teamsShow<\/p>\n New Zealand: Will Young, Devon Conway, Rachin Ravindra, Kane Williamson, Daryl Mitchell, Tom Latham (wk), Michael Bracewell, Mitchell Santner (c), Nathan Smith, Matt Henry, Jacob Duffy.<\/p>\n England: Jamie Smith, Ben Duckett, Joe Root, Jacob Bethell, Harry Brook (c), Jos Buttler (wk), Sam Curran, Liam Dawson, Brydon Carse, Adil Rashid, Luke Wood<\/p>\n (possible teams)<\/p>\n Thank you for your feedback.<\/p>\n