Tom Latham’s captaincy enters history books after monumental England feat

New Zealand have defeated England in the third and final Test match, as Tom Latham’s boys secure the three-match series, winning it 2-1. They also created history after the dominating 160 runs win over the Three Lions, as it is their first series victory after losing the first Test match. Tom Latham also joined an elite list of captains.

The Kiwis provided a target of 373 runs for the home side, as Ben Stokes’s side were bundled out for the score of 212 runs, with Jamie Smith being the highest scorer in the run chase with 60 runs in his bag. After the series win, Tom Latham became only the sixth captain to win an overseas Test series in both India and England.

Tom Latham enters elite list

Apart from that, Tom Latham also became the first overseas Captain to win a Test series in England and India in this century. This is a historic achievement for the Southpaw since taking over the leadership role of the side in the traditional format of the game. Previously, they famously beat India in the October-November 2024 Test series.

Under his leadership, the Kiwis became the first visiting team to whitewash India 3-0 in a three-match Test series on their home soil. They completely outplayed one of the most dominant home sides in the oldest format of the game. Coming to the win at Trent Bridge marked New Zealand’s first away series triumph in England containing three or more tests since 1999.

“Really special moment”- Tom Latham after historic series win vs England

Tom Latham was happy with New Zealand’s performance and called it a historic moment for the team and was also pleased with the effort that the team has showcased throughout the series. The opener also took a dig at Bazball and stated that they played a traditional old school cricket than aggressive one.

“Yeah, really special moment. I guess when you set out at the start of a series, I guess this is what you want to work towards. But, yeah, I think for me the most pleasing thing, it’s been a whole squad effort throughout the three games. Managed to stick to a style that we’ve been really proud of.”

“You know, it’s been a little bit old-school test cricket than, you know, probably what it has been traditionally over the last few years. So, yeah, just to be standing here in this position, it’s, yeah, really, really pleasing and really proud of the guys. (On the series win) Yeah, I guess it does.”

“You know, I thought we did a lot of good things at Lord’s. You know, it was a tricky surface, and, you know, things could have been slightly different with, you know, a few different situations. But I think the way we were able to come to the Oval, play our brand, some guys stuck their hands up at some really important times.”

“Want to congratulate you on an amazing career”- Tom Latham congratulates Ben Stokes

Latham also congratulated Ben Stokes, who announced his retirement yesterday during the Test match, and also lauded the England captain’s amazing career and recalled some of the battles they had during their playing days. Stokes started his captaincy stint with a win against Kiwis and ends with a loss against them.

He said, “Just on behalf of the New Zealand cricket team, mate, I just want to congratulate you on an amazing career (to Stokes). Obviously, a once-in-a-generation player. To play against you for all these years, we’ve obviously had some fierce battles throughout your career. And just on behalf of all of us, I just want to congratulate you on a fantastic career, mate. Enjoy your retirement.”