Rory Burns continued where he left off in the Ashes with a gritty half-century in England’s first innings against New Zealand. In his three hour stay at the crease, he enjoyed the odd piece of good fortune but also showed why he’s perhaps the most bloody-minded of the England openers to debut since the retirement of Andrew Strauss in 2012.

Here are six balls that epitomised his stay at the crease:

Over 4.6 – The barest of nicks

Having finished the previous Trent Boult over with two confident strokes that sent the ball to the fence, the first a glorious straight drive and the second a characteristic flick off the pads, the final ball of Boult’s third over nearly brought a very different result.

A brilliant delivery that just left Burns at the last moment drew an ultimately unnecessary prod. New Zealand half-heartedly appealed for a caught behind with wicketkeeper BJ Watling seemingly confident that Burns had missed it. Replays showed though that Burns got the thinnest of edges on the ball. An early missed opportunity for New Zealand.

Over 36.2 – Hit on the helmet

[caption id=”attachment_127675″ align=”alignnone” width=”800″] Rory Burns having his helmet checked after being hit by Wagner[/caption]

With talk of Burns’ shortcomings against the short ball, Wagner hurled down a barrage of bouncers that tested Burns’ mettle either side of lunch. This time, Burns was hit on the helmet as the ball kissed its top as it flew over Watling to the boundary rope. Burns was hit twice by Wagner and at times he looked rattled.

But while Burns doesn’t really possess a ‘get-out’ shot against pace to release the pressure, he didn’t looked like getting out to the short stuff either. Stubbornly dropping his hands at every available opportunity, Burns showed his willingness to cop the odd blow. As England’s Test team make its first steps in its new era, Burns’ resilience and bloody-mindedness in an area that might be perceived as a weakness is a shining example to his teammates.

Over 37.1 – Yours!

A gem of a delivery from Tim Southee, although if you were being hyper critical of Burns you could make the case that he should have left this one alone. The ball flew at a catchable height to both Ross Taylor and Tom Latham in the cordon but in the end both just turned around and looked at the other. A big let off for Burns.

Over 42.2 – Umpire’s call

Huge appeal! Live, this one looked dead. Maybe it’s hit Burns outside the line? Maybe it’s going over? Has he got an inside edge on it? Kane Williamson reviews decisively, he looks confident. Replays show that it’s hit Burns in line and the stumps too. But not by enough. It’s ‘umpire’s call’ on hitting, Burns with a third slice of luck. Not overturned but only just.

[breakout id=”0″][/breakout]

Over 44.4 – 50 for Burns

Burns reaches his sixth 50 plus score for England with another whip through the leg side for four off Boult. He had his fair share of fortune but it’s another well-fought knock that’s first taken the shine off the new ball and then worn down the opposition attack before England’s engine room of Root, Stokes, Pope, Buttler and Curran have got to the crease. Old fashioned opening batting.

Over 45.1 – de Grandhomme gets his man

If you looked at particular deliveries in isolation, you’d conclude that Rory Burns is no Test match opener even if the evidence elsewhere says the contrary. Three consecutive Colin de Grandhomme balls have Burns all at sea, the third finding his edge and sending him on his way. Burns’ mini-battle against de Grandhomme looked like and ended much like his painful duel against Tim Murtagh earlier in the year that nearly saw him lose his spot in the side.

Related tags:

International CricketNew Zealand v EnglandRory BurnsSeries Editorial