Root makes 77 as England struggle to 282 for 9 against New Zealand

There were useful knocks by Jonny Bairstow (33) and captain Jos Buttler (43), but they failed to kick on against the 2019 finalists, who were led by stand-in captain Tom Latham.

Ahmedabad: Defending champions England’s batters struggled on a sluggish pitch and made a below-par 282 for nine against New Zealand in the World Cup opener here on Thursday.

Asked to bat first, England were served well by Joe Root‘s 86-ball 77 but other batsmen were shackled by pacer Matt Henry (3/46), left-arm spinner Mitchell Santner (2/37) and part-time spinner Glenn Phillips (2/17).

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There were useful knocks by Jonny Bairstow (33) and captain Jos Buttler (43), but they failed to kick on against the 2019 finalists, who were led by stand-in captain Tom Latham.

Brief scores: England: 282 for 9 in 50 overs (Joe Root 77, Jos Buttler 43, Jonny Bairstow 33; Matt Henry 3/46, Mitchell Santner 2/37, Glenn Phillips 2/17) vs New Zealand.