Sam Drury
Ben Foakes: England wicketkeeper needs runs to secure spot long-term and Lord's was a good start
Joe Root was the hero at Lord's but Ben Foakes' contribution could be just as important as he aims to secure his spot as England's long-term wicketkeeper; the 29-year-old has not scored a half-century in his last 20 Test innings but looked the part in the match-winning stand
Last Updated: 12/06/22 8:21pm
Joe Root walked off the field, bat raised, taking the acclaim of the Lord's crowd following his majestic, match-winning hundred.
It was a special moment for Root given what had gone before and he would go on to talk of the "unhealthy effect" the captaincy - relinquished a little under two months ago - ended up having on his personal life.
A short distance back, letting his former skipper take his bow alone was Ben Foakes: the junior partner in the unbroken 120-run sixth wicket stand that had helped secure victory over New Zealand in a fabulous first Test.
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The records will show that Foakes contributed 32 runs from 92 balls to the partnership, compared to a run-a-ball 81 from Root. More importantly, they will show that he was there at the end.
The Surrey wicketkeeper came in with England still firmly up against it, more than 100 runs from victory with five wickets remaining and only the bowlers left to come. The fact they got across the line so comfortably in the end is down to Root's brilliance, yes, but also to the efforts of Foakes.
This is a big summer for Foakes. It is coming up to five years since he was named as part of England's touring party for the 17/18 Ashes. A year later he scored a century on debut in Sri Lanka, but he has never truly been given the chance to establish himself as first choice wicketkeeper in the Test side.
In fact, the match at Lord's was his first home Test, with the previous 11 all coming overseas.
Foakes' credentials as a pure gloveman have never been in doubt. His director of cricket at Surrey, Alec Stewart, a former England wicketkeeper himself, has repeatedly stated his belief that the 29-year-old is the best in the world behind the stumps.
With the bat though, he was seen as the third of three when compared to Jonny Bairstow and Jos Buttler, the men for whom he has acted as understudy at various points over the years. Given both are good 'keepers too, that was enough to give them the edge.
But with England having committed to Bairstow as a frontline batter and Buttler being left to flourish in the shorter formats for now, Foakes looks set for a decent run in the XI.
He did not exactly let the opportunity melt effortlessly into his gloves on the tour of the West Indies though, with unusual sloppiness behind the stumps and an average of just 19.20 across six innings, four of which were played on the flattest of pitches.
So, while his place was not under any real pressure going into the New Zealand series, he still had to prove he deserved to keep it long-term. Since his debut series in Sri Lanka, he had a Test average of 16.18 going into the series opener and there were questions over his ability to play top-class fast bowling.
An average of 98.75 in the County Championship this season, with an unbeaten century and two fifties, shows Foakes is more than capable of scoring runs against seam bowling but, as countless English batters have found in recent times, there is a big difference between county bowlers and those at Test level.
Tim Southee provided an example of that as he went wide on the crease to draw a nothing shot and a tame dismissal from Foakes, doing little to dispel the doubts, and though his glove work was back to his usual standard, he walked out in the second innings under that bit more pressure.
After all, it is not hard to envisage a scenario where a supposedly long run in the side is cut short due to a lack of runs.
Harry Brook has made a blistering start to the season with Yorkshire and a Test debut is surely a matter of 'when' rather than 'if'. Should England be desperate to get him into the XI against South Africa later in the summer, might they reconsider their stance on Bairstow? Give him back the gloves he was so disappointed to lose and slot Brook in at five?
Or perhaps Buttler's red-hot form in limited overs cricket continues. New director of England men's cricket Rob Key has been a very vocal supporter of Foakes' predecessor behind the stumps in the past, while Ben Stokes has spoken of how much he leaned on Buttler for advice when he first captained the side in Root's absence back in 2020.
Certainly, on paper, Buttler appears to fit better with the sort of adventurous cricket expected under Brendon McCullum and Stokes than he did under Chris Silverwood, where the focus was on batting long and wearing down the opposition. Might he be in line for a recall?
Neither scenario is particularly likely for the time being. But if Foakes isn't contributing with the bat then it won't be long before he is looking over his shoulder, especially if England persist with a line-up that sees the tail start at No 8.
That is why Foakes' second innings knock at Lord's was so important. The runs were important but more so was the manner in which he got them.
He battled through the third evening, looking like he was batting on a different surface to Root - no shame in that - but did what was required. He made sure he was there for the start of day four.
The player who came out on that fourth morning bore little resemblance to the one who had scratched around the previous evening though. There was a freedom and fluidity to Foakes' batting, he had located the pitch that Root was batting on and found it was to his liking too.
Gone was the nervousness of day three, replaced by a calm confidence as he punched, pulled to and - most pleasingly - drove through mid-on for four to help England to their target. All the while remaining secure in defence, never giving the Black Caps a sniff of the wicket that would have broken the game wide open.
Nobody could have asked anymore of Foakes but already focus will have turned to Trent Bridge and the second Test, that begins on Friday.
Much in the same way as McCullum and Stokes will view England's win, this is just the start - a good start, one that will no doubt instil confidence, but still just the first step on a long road.
High on the agenda for Foakes will be ending a run of 20 Test innings without a half-century. If he bats like he did on Sunday, there is every chance it doesn't become 21.
Root deservedly took the plaudits but if things go to plan for Foakes, that fourth innings at Lord's may hold a special place for him too, something worth far more than just 32 runs.
Watch day one of the second LV= Insurance Test between England and New Zealand, at Trent Bridge, live on Sky Sports Cricket and Sky Sports Main Event from 10am on Friday.
