England resumed at 48-1, chasing 258 to win the match and series. At lunch Root was 74, Ben Stokes was 20 and England needed 90 runs to claim its seventh consecutive test win and its fourth victory in five series. New Zealand has been on the back foot through most of the two-match series, losing the first test by 267 runs and being forced to follow-on 226 behind in the current test. It now faces its first series loss at home in 10 series since 2017. While Root took scored his 74 at a run a ball, Stokes took his 20 runs from 75 deliveries.
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