Spinner Shoaib Bashir took four for 69 as England recovered from a poor start to reduce New Zealand to 319 for eight at the close of play on the opening day of an evenly poised first test on Thursday.

Cricket - Second Test - Pakistan v England - Multan International Cricket Stadium, Multan, Pakistan - December 12, 2022. England's captain Ben Stokes walks after his team won the match. REUTERS/Akhtar Soomro/ File Photo (Reuters) - England captain Ben Stokes won the toss and elected to bowl first in the opening match of a three-test series against New Zealand at Christchurch's Hagley Oval on Thursday.

England won the toss and chose to bowl against New Zealand on Thursday on the first day of the first test at Hagley Oval. The Black Caps come into the series following their 3-0 series win at India. They were the first team to sweep India in a home series of three tests or more.

England's seamers struck twice in the opening session to remove New Zealand's openers and reduce the hosts to 104 for two at lunch on the opening day of the first test in Christchurch on Thursday. Skipper Ben Stokes won the toss and elected to send his bowlers out at Hagley Oval and got an almost immediate return when Gus Atkinson sent back Devon Conway,

"Typically the wicket gets better and better here," said Ben Stokes, England's captain. "There's a nice covering a grass on it so hopefully, we can get something out of it with the new ball." He also confirmed a debut for Jacob Bethell,