- England fought back on the second day of the first Test against New Zealand
- A 151-run partnership from Harry Brook and Ollie Pope steadied the ship
- It came to an end when Pope was dismissed following a brilliant catch
Dropped catches were the story of Day Two for New Zealand but one of the ones they did take was truly special.
Harry Brook had to ride his luck on the way to a game-changing century as England turned the tide after some top-order struggles on day two in Christchurch.
The tourists dismissed the Black Caps for 348 in the morning session and found themselves under pressure at 71 for four with Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Jacob Bethell and Joe Root all gone.
However, England fought back through a brilliant 151-run partnership from Harry Brook and Ollie Pope.
And it took a moment of inspiration to bring that partnership to an end.
Brook had already been dropped three times when Glenn Phillips produced a jaw-dropping one-handed catch at gully to send Pope (77) on his way.
Glenn Phillips produced a stunning one-handed catch to bring Ollie Pope’s innings to an end
Phillips leapt to clasp the ball with one hand and bring an end to a brilliant partnership
The New Zealand all-rounder was pumped up after adding another fine catch to his resume
The flying Phillips dived full stretch to clutch the ball and make the crucial breakthrough for his side and he produced a celebration worthy of such a take.
Brook, however, remained unfazed and galloped through the nineties on his way to a seventh Test hundred.
He finished on 132 not out with a 37 not out from Ben Stokes leaving England 319-5 at stumps.
Despite his productive stay, Pope would be forgiven for cursing his bad luck after falling to a staggeringly good one-handed catch from Glenn Phillips.
That display of skill and athleticism was out of sync with an otherwise sloppy display from the Kiwis, who dropped Brook on four separate occasions (on 18, 41, 70 and 106) and also spilled chances from Ben Duckett and Ben Stokes.
‘As I was walking off Brooky came and apologised, I was wondering why he made a beeline for me,’ he said.
‘That was a great catch from Glenn, fair play to him, but another day that goes for four and you’re off and running to make a really big score. It’s funny how the game goes.’
