Ben Stokes threw his hands up in the air, before wringing them around his waist, unable to mask his frustration as an edge found its way on to the Trent Bridge turf.
Tension was simmering on the second morning of the second hottest day of Test cricket in this country and Jamie Smith was back in the crosshairs.
Stokes had gone wider on the crease, squaring up the nightwatchman Will O’Rourke and catching a chunky edge that wicketkeeper Smith, diving to his right, finger tipped onto the palms of first slip Joe Root, going the other way.
At 391 for four, New Zealand had added 30 wicketless runs to their overnight total and chances were at a premium on the flattest of pitches.
With New Zealand imploding to 438, it did not prove costly, but attention was nevertheless back on England’s tactic of selecting a batsman who keeps rather than the country’s best gloveman – Ben Foakes remains out with a torso injury sustained while bowling at the end of a bore draw last month, if you were wondering – a week after James Rew’s agility behind the stumps was partly to blame for the ceding of advantage in second Test defeat at the Oval.
Just as in his dropping of Tom Latham, down the leg side off Gus Atkinson on the opening day, Smith’s footwork was at fault.
Jamie Smith’s dropped catch, when he dived in front of Joe Root, left Ben Stokes frustrated
Smith is struggling with his footwork and a lack of rhythm behind the stumps for England
With Latham, he appeared to go too far and missed the chance on the inside line. ‘It’s hit the heels of Jamie Smith’s hands,’ said Steven Finn on Test Match Special. ‘That’s exactly what England did not want or need.’
For O’Rourke, his initial weight transfer was to the left, meaning that he was on the stretch when the ball reached him – at about the point at which it was a 50-50 call on whether was the keeper’s catch or that of first slip.
One of Smith’s issues is a lack of rhythm. Wicketkeepers need it, just the same as batters and bowlers and this is his first action since a self-inflicted, 10-day break.
At 25, he has had his children younger than most in the professional cricket fraternity and retaining the courage of his convictions as a husband and father – placing his family ahead of playing for his country when he missed the entire Test tour of New Zealand in 2024-25 and again with a shorter paternity leave last week – was admirable.
Rew did not appear ready for the top-level, but had England opted to throw the gloves to the uber confident Jordan Cox, of Essex, a competent performance might have provided future food for thought, not least because he is from a similar mould.
Tom Blundell’s ability to stand up to the stumps when seamers are bowling has been a crucial part of New Zealand’s resurgence in this series
England identified Smith for his ability to turn the tide of matches with the bat and his acumen in this regard – average 40, strike rate of 75 – was rewarded as recently as last month when he was promoted to No 6, above Stokes, in the batting order.
But the onus is on him to reduce the chat about the other side of his game. Not an easy task when he plays as a batsman at Surrey, meaning that regular wicketkeeping drills with director of cricket Alec Stewart only take place when Foakes is absent.
So far this summer, Smith’s specialist coach with England has been Sarah Taylor, who could be seen on the outfield before play on Friday, slamming tennis balls at him from a distance of 10 yards.
Taylor has quickly deconstructed theories of being a token appointment. It is understood to have impressed the coaching staff at the Oval that she made contact with them to discuss Smith before this series, and he is said to be enjoying their working relationship.
James Rew also struggled behind the stumps as Smith’s replacement for the second Test, conceding 31 byes
‘She’s phenomenal at her job. She’s in this dressing room because we feel she’s the best person to enhance our fielding skills but also those of Jamie Smith,’ said Stokes, who spent time with Taylor on the England Lions tour to Abu Dhabi earlier this year.
It should be noted too that Smith bagged four catches in the first innings. Alan Knott, arguably England’s best ever gloveman and a wicketkeeping consultant during Duncan Fletcher’s time in charge at the turn of the century, used to say that the watermark for elite keepers was a 90 per cent conversion rate of chances.
In his first two years as a Test wicketkeeper, Smith operated above 95, and although his 2026 mark has dropped to 81.8%, in a small sample size it is heavily influenced by his two bodges here.
Neither proved costly, though, and despite Stokes’ histrionics, if they feature in a repeat of England’s 2022 turnaround against the Kiwis, they will not linger in the memory.
