New Zealand v England Test combined XI: Who joins Ben Stokes and Kane Williamson?

BLAKE BINT selects a combined XI ahead of the two-match Test series between New Zealand and England

England have travelled to New Zealand for a two-match Test series before their attention turns to a white-ball tour of Bangladesh.

Blake Bint has compiled a combined XI based on the players selected in both squads.

Tom Latham

4,904 runs at 41.91 (13 centuries, 25 half-centuries)

New Zealand's vice-captain, go-to opening batter and an occasional wicketkeeper. Latham, who made his Test debut back in 2014, had been struggling for form of late but silenced some of his doubters with a century and two half-centuries against Pakistan. Seven of his 13 Test centuries have come on home soil, where he averages 47.03.

Devon Conway

1,150 runs at 54.76 (four centuries, five half-centuries)

Despite having played just 12 Test matches at the age of 31, Conway has formed an important partnership at the top of the order with Latham since breaking onto the international scene in 2021. Like Latham, he impressed in Pakistan, scoring a century in his most recent Test outing, and has added some stability to New Zealand's top order, which had at one stage looked dangerously reliant on Williamson.

In home Tests, he averages 64.66 and has scored three 90-plus knocks in six innings.

Kane Williamson

7,645 runs at 53.83 (25 centuries, 33 half-centuries)

Another member of the New Zealand over-30 club, Williamson's stats in Test cricket speak for themselves and he is a near-automatic pick for most combined XIs. The former New Zealand captain needs just 39 runs to become his country's leading run-scorer in Test cricket, overtaking Ross Taylor.

A stalwart of New Zealand's top four since his debut in 2010, Williamson put himself among elite company when he scored his fifth Test double-century during their recent tour to Pakistan. Without the responsibility of captaincy since the end of last year, New Zealand fans will be hoping Williamson can continue his form under Southee.

^{Joe Root [Mike Hewitt/Getty Images]}

Joe Root

10,629 runs at 49.43 (28 centuries, 55 half-centuries)

Root, like Williamson, has made a name for himself as one of the 'big four' in Test cricket over the past decade. The former England captain has passed 1,000 Test runs in each of the past two years, scoring 11 centuries. In seven outings in New Zealand, he has scored 469 runs at 39.08, including one century, but three of those appearances came back in 2013 when he was at the beginning of his international career.

Harry Brook

480 runs at 80 (three centuries, one half-century)

Bursting onto the international scene in 2022, a 23-year-old Brook has already been tipped to become the next Root, Virat Kohli or Babar Azam after just four Test matches.

Daryl Mitchell, who enjoyed a remarkable year in 2022, was also in contention for the No.5 berth but has been pipped by Brook thanks to the Yorkshire native's form in Pakistan. In his first away series, Brook scored three centuries in as many matches in December and now boasts a Test strike rate in excess of 90.

Ben Stokes

5,602 runs at 36.14 (12 centuries, 28 half-centuries); 193 wickets at 31.99

The new leader of the England side and a player who, alongside head coach Brendon McCullum, appears to have the ability to turn everything he touches to gold. The allrounder has a bold approach to captaincy and the ability to turn up in the big moments with bat, ball and in the field.

In the country of his birth, he averages 35.42 after scoring 248 runs in four appearances.

^{Kane Williamson [Alex Davidson/Getty Images]}

Tom Blundell

1,364 runs at 42.62 (53 catches, six stumpings)

The New Zealand wicketkeeper adds a gritty determination at No.7 in addition to his solid glove work. With three centuries and nine half-centuries in Test cricket he adds stability in New Zealand's middle order, which in the past few years has been prone to collapse, and enjoyed an impressive 12 months in 2022, scoring 644 runs at 58.54 in eight outings.

Neil Wagner

247 wickets at 26.90

Arguably one of the world's most underrated bowlers of the last decade, a 36-year-old Neil Wagner is still operating at the highest level. A left-arm swing bowler, he is known for his tenacity and willingness to bowl himself into the ground in search of big wickets.

He requires just three wickets to become the fifth New Zealander to take 250 Test wickets and certainly finds home soil a happy hunting ground, taking 165 wickets at 26.15 in 37 matches.

Stuart Broad

566 wickets at 27.77

There's no room in this XI for Tim Southee, with Stuart Broad preferred. The England pacer, a new-ball specialist, didn't have his best year in 2021 but excelled either side of that, taking 38 wickets at 14.76 in 2020 and 40 wickets at 25.75 in 2022. Against New Zealand, he averages 28.46 while in New Zealand, he has picked up 34 wickets at 28.47.

^{Jack Leach [Matthew Lewis/Getty Images]}

Jack Leach

110 wickets at 34.25

Ish Sodhi, who was impressive in Pakistan, and Michael Bracewell were both in contention to be the spinner in this combined XI but Jack Leach gets the nod. He finished 2022 with 46 wickets at 38.28, only one fewer than Kagiso Rabada and Nathan Lyon, and bowled a whopping 609 overs. Often playing on pitches which offer little assistance, he's a reliable pair of hands to hold up one end while the pacers get their breath back.

James Anderson

675 wickets at 26.13

Who else? A 40-year-old Anderson is as reliable for England as he has ever been and as the all-time leading Test wicket-taker among seam bowlers, he was a shoo-in for this XI. And, he's only getting better with age, averaging just 20 with the ball since 2017. The Lancashire bowler's experience, skill, guile and consistency make him an asset to almost any side.