Grading the WNBA sophomores: Paige Bueckers, Dominique Malonga, Sonia Citron, more

The 2026 WNBA season is rolling right along, and the majority of teams have played at least 15 games. With the first trimester of the season complete, we have more than enough evidence to examine how the league’s sophomores have performed.

This group features a number of stars from the vaunted 2025 draft class, including Rookie of the Year Paige Bueckers and fellow All-Stars Sonia Citron and Kiki Iriafen, as well as some former first-round picks and undrafted players who made their WNBA debuts last season.

Let’s hand out some early-season grades.

Note: 2025 first-round picks Justė Jocytė (No. 5), Georgia Amoore (No. 6) and Ajša Sivka (No. 10) were not included. Jocytė (overseas) and Amoore (ACL) did not play last season, so they are now rookies, while Sivka has decided to take the college basketball route and will play for Kentucky next season. Additionally, only select second- and third-round picks were included.

First Round

The former No. 1 overall pick, who was an All-Star, named to the All-WNBA Second Team and won Rookie of the Year last season, has picked up right where she left off. Consistency has long been Bueckers’ trademark, so it’s fitting that her numbers through her first 14 games as a sophomore are nearly identical to her rookie numbers. In fact, she has been even more efficient, particularly from 3-point range.

If there’s a criticism to make of Bueckers, it’s that she should be more assertive, given her talent. The Wings are 7-2 when she scores more than 15 points and 2-4 when she does not. Still, she’s one of the most efficient guards in the league, and is 11th in the league in scoring and seventh in assists, while leading the much-improved Wings in both categories. Bueckers is well on her way to racking up more accolades and should make her playoff debut this season. Grade: A-

Malonga, who was brought along slowly last season behind Nneka Ogwumike and Ezi Magbegor, had three 20-point games in 42 appearances as a rookie. She had two in her first three games as a sophomore, but suffered a concussion against the Tempo in that third outing — her second concussion in three months — and missed the next eight games.

Despite a frustrating start to the season, Malonga has shown why she’s one of the league’s most promising bigs. She’s putting up career highs across the board and is coming off the best performance of her career Wednesday against the Fire: 28 points, 11 rebounds, three assists, two steals and three blocks. Her impact as a rim protector, in particular, is remarkable. Just look at these numbers, via databallr:

ON	23.5%	50.7%
OFF	26.8%	65.5%

Grade: A

Citron, who was an All-Star and finished as runner-up to Bueckers for Rookie of the Year in 2025, immediately shed the low-floor, low-ceiling label with which she entered the league. And her first 12 games in 2026 have proven that her performance last season was no fluke. While her 3-point shooting has fallen off a cliff — league-best 44.5% last season to 28.6% this season — she’s actually been more efficient overall (60.9% true shooting last season to 63.8% this season). She’s finishing everything in the paint and, thanks to the league’s emphasis on freedom of movement, her free-throw attempts per game have nearly doubled (3.4 to 6.6).

Citron also delivered one of the plays of the season when she sank a turnaround fadeaway off a jump ball to beat the Tempo at the buzzer.

Grade: A

Along with Bueckers and Citron, Iriafen was one of three rookies to make the 2025 All-Star Game, and she came flying out of the gates this season with three consecutive double-doubles. During that stretch, she set career highs in scoring (25 points vs. Indiana) and rebounds (16 vs. Toronto). Her production has slowed a bit since then, but her numbers are still up across the board on better efficiency (60.4% true shooting, compared to 54.8% last season) and she’s eighth in the league in rebounding. She’s also already made more 3-pointers (five) than she did all of last season (two).

Iriafen sprained her ankle in a loss to Indiana on June 8, however, and has not played since. Thankfully, it does not appear to be a long-term issue. Grade: A

Morrow didn’t do much as a rookie, but her time with Athletes Unlimited in the offseason has paid off. She started her sophomore campaign with four double-doubles in five games, and is one of three players — along with Jessica Shepard and Angel Reese — averaging a double-double (11.9 points, 10.4 rebounds).

Morrow is putting up career highs across the board, but is still shooting under 40% from the field despite taking the majority of her attempts in the paint. Notably, Morrow is shooting just 53.3% within five feet. Of the 16 players taking at least five attempts per game within five feet, only Reese (48.4%) is shooting worse. Grade: B-

Rivers is an incredible athlete and a versatile perimeter defender, but since her days at NC State, there have been serious questions about her offense. Those have not gone away. She showed some encouraging signs as a rookie, particularly toward the end of the season, but got off to an extremely rough start as a sophomore. While Rivers has looked better since Leïla Lacan’s return from her overseas commitments, her 35.3/18.9/63.3 shooting splits are brutal.

The good news for her is that the Sun‘s rebuild and her defensive ability will give her a long runway to figure things out. Grade: C-

Barker didn’t play well to begin her rookie season with the Sparks and fell out of the rotation after the first month. The team then left her unprotected in the expansion draft and she was selected by the Fire. In Portland, she’s taken full advantage of her new opportunity. She’s tripled her scoring from last season, is fifth in the league in 3-point percentage (45.3%) and her relentless effort on both ends is infectious.

Plus, Barker wrote herself into franchise history with a buzzer-beater over the Liberty to give the new iteration of the Fire their first-ever win. Grade: A+

Van Lith had a rough rookie season with the Sky, who waived her prior to opening night. She caught on with the Sun and had a few really nice outings to start the season, but struggled to maintain that level of play and got waived again to clear a roster spot when Lacan returned from overseas. Van Lith is now back with the Sun as a developmental player, though she has only played once in June. Grade: C

Hailey Van Lith returning to Sun on developmental deal: Can the ex-college star stick in the WNBA?

Jack Maloney

James had one really strong stretch during her rookie season, but didn’t do much otherwise. She hasn’t done much early in her sophomore season either. To be fair, she’s in a tough spot in Dallas behind Arike Ogunbowale, Bueckers and now Azzi Fudd, but when she has gotten some extended playing time, she hasn’t set the world on fire. Shooting 37.7% overall and 24.2% from 3-point range isn’t going to cut it as a score-first guard. Grade: D+

Second Round

Nye has had a whirlwind start to her professional career. She appeared in all 44 regular-season games and won a title as a rookie with the Aces, but was left unprotected in the expansion draft and was selected by the Tempo. Her time in Toronto was short, however, as she failed to make the team’s final roster. While she eventually found a spot with the Dream, she has barely played this season. Grade: Incomplete

It was a bit of a surprise that Kosu came over to the WNBA right away, and the Russian forward barely played as a rookie. The same might have been true this season if not for injuries. But with Napheesa Collier still sidelined and Emma Cechova out for the season with a torn ACL, Kosu has been inserted into the rotation.

She still doesn’t play huge minutes or put up big numbers — she’s scored in double-digits twice this season — but she has 50/50/91.7 shooting splits and has been very solid off the bench for the first-place Lynx, who have stunned everyone this season. Grade: B+

Westbeld showed some promise toward the end of her rookie season with the Sky as a floor-spacing big, but did not end up making the team’s full roster this season. She is still in Chicago on a developmental contract, but has not appeared in a game, which is confusing given their offensive issues. Grade: N/A

No one could understand why Paopao fell all the way to No. 18 in last year’s draft, given her obvious shooting ability. And sure enough, she finished third among rookies in 3-pointers made and sixth in 3-point percentage. She’s shooting an even higher clip from 3 this season (39.5%), but she’s been very poor inside the arc (27.3% on 2s) and coach Karl Smesko prefers to ride with his starters. With Jordin Canada, Rhyne Howard and Allisha Gray all healthy, Paopao isn’t playing as much as she did as a rookie. Outside of the one game she started in place of Howard, Paopao has played more than 15 minutes just twice. Grade: C+

The Fever‘s injury issues last season opened the door for Timpson, who didn’t play much as a rookie but showed the coaching staff enough to earn a bigger role as a sophomore. Though a bit undersized, she makes up for it with her unique length and athleticism, which gives the Fever a different look in the frontcourt. She’s a strong rebounder and arguably the best rim protector on the team — or at least the most exciting. While her offense remains limited, she is shooting 60.6%. Grade: B

Third Round

Chen was one of the Valkyries‘ final cuts out of training camp last season, but after a month, she rejoined the team for the remainder of the campaign and became the first player of Taiwanese descent to play in the WNBA. After a terrific offseason with Athletes Unlimited, Chen has been one of the most improved sophomores.

Her playing time and production have been sporadic, but she’s had some big nights off the bench, including a 15-point outing in the Valkyries’ win over the Wings on Wednesday — their fourth in a row. She’s putting up career highs across the board, has tripled her scoring output and is shooting 52.2%. Grade: A-

Undrafted

Salaün had offers from multiple WNBA teams ahead of last season and chose to sign with the Valkyries. She had a terrific debut campaign and was named to the All-Rookie Team alongside the four lottery picks from the 2025 Draft. Though Gabby Williams‘ arrival in free agency meant Salaün had to move to the bench this season, her usage rate (23.5%) and scoring production (13.7 points per game) are actually up.

Salaün’s ability to space the floor and shoot a high percentage from 3 is crucial to the Valkyries’ offense, and she’s currently on pace to become just the 11th player in league history to shoot at least 40% on six or more 3-point attempts per game. The Valkyries have a 112.7 offensive rating with Salaün on the court and a 103.1 offensive rating when she sits. Grade: A

Akoa Makani was a relative unknown when she signed a training camp contract with the Mercury last season as an undrafted rookie, but that changed quickly as she helped lead the team to the Finals as their starting point guard. She missed the first few weeks of her sophomore season while overseas, which was a big blow to the Mercury, who have not been able to recover from their slow start.

Though the Mercury have not been able to recapture their form from last season, Akoa Makani has. In fact, she’s been even better. She’s putting up career highs across the board and has been her usual relentless self on the defensive end. She hasn’t played enough games yet to qualify for leaderboards, but her 1.6 steals per game would be tied for seventh in the league. Grade: A

Previous year picks

Geiselsöder, a second-round pick in 2020, made her WNBA debut last season with the Wings. Though she played fairly well, Dallas left her unprotected in the expansion draft and she was selected by the Fire, who initially made her their starting center. She has since been benched in favor of Megan Gustafson, however, amid a poor shooting season. Geiselsöder’s biggest value is her ability to space the floor from the five spot, but she’s shooting 35.2% overall this season, including 31.9% from 3-point range. Grade: C-

Leite, the No. 9 pick in 2024, has had an interesting start to her career. She didn’t play in the WNBA in 2024, and the Wings left her unprotected in the Valkyries’ expansion draft. Golden State selected her, but after a so-so rookie season, left her unprotected in this year’s expansion draft. This time around, she was selected by the Fire, who wanted to bet on her potential. Portland has already cashed in.

Leite has been extremely impressive as the Fire’s starting point guard. She’s not only putting up career highs across the board; she’s doubled her scoring and assist numbers and has been a maestro in the pick-and-roll. Her 20.3 pick-and-roll possessions are first in the league and generating 1.023 points per possession. Grade: A+

Pick-and-rolls including passes

The No. 10 pick in 2024, Lacan made her WNBA debut last season and was a revelation for the Sun. If she hadn’t missed the first two months while overseas, she likely would have made the All-Rookie Team. Lacan again missed significant time to start her sophomore season and has struggled to find a scoring rhythm since her arrival. She’s shooting just 38.6% from the field, including 24.2% from 3-point range.

Despite her poor shooting, Lacan’s playmaking — team-high five assists per game — and elite perimeter defense have made the Sun far more competitive. Prior to her arrival, they were 1-7 with a -17.6 net rating. While they still aren’t winning, they are 1-6 with a -8.7 net rating with Lacan. Grade: B

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Spurs set to make moves in the upcoming NBA draft

Determined to bounce back from their Finals defeat, the San Antonio Spurs are already plotting an aggressive move for next week’s NBA Draft. The front office is reportedly looking to trade up the board by packaging multiple draft assets to secure a higher-tier prospect.

The San Antonio Spurs are wasting no time reshaping their roster after falling to the New York Knicks in the 2026 NBA Finals.

According to ClutchPoints NBA insider Brett Siegel, the front office plans to build a potential trade ahead of next week’s NBA Draft.

Credit David Banks-USA TODAY Sports – Scanpix

The Spurs trade strategy

San Antonio is actively exploring options to move up the draft board. The team currently holds three second-round picks: numbers 35, 42, and 44.

The Spurs want to package these assets to secure a higher selection. They are specifically targeting either a late first-round spot or the 31st or 32nd overall pick.

If the front office successfully executes the trade, three prospects have emerged as primary targets: Zuby Ejiofor, Joshua Jefferson, and Alex Karaban.

With three second-round picks at their disposal, the organization appears positioned to be one of the more active teams during draft week.

The clock is ticking for the Spurs’ front office. The 2026 NBA Draft is scheduled for June 23 and 24 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.

Management appears determined to maximize its assets quickly. Spurs want to ensure the team’s young core is deep enough to make another championship run next season.

The strategy would allow the team to move higher on the board and potentially secure a player they believe can contribute alongside Victor Wembanyama and the rest of the team’s young core.

2025-26 season for the Spurs

Despite the disappointing finish, the Finals appearance reinforced the belief that San Antonio’s championship window is only beginning to open.

Credit AP-Scanpix

In the 2025-26 season, the Spurs lacked experience, possessing one of the youngest team cores ever. Wembanyama is 22 years old, while Stephon Castle is 21.

Moreover, their prized rookie, Dylan Harper, who was just 19 years old and averaged over 18 points per game in the NBA Finals, is a budding star.

They should be much more dangerous next year, when everyone has improved over the offseason with the added experience of participating in the Finals.

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Manny Machado leads Padres to win over Rangers in extras

ARLINGTON — Padres manager Craig Stammen has shuffled his lineup all season trying to light a fire under his stalled offense, but one guy has stayed put even amid a career-worst season.

“I trust Manny Machado,” Stammen said after the Padres’ 6-4 victory over the Rangers in 10 innings on Saturday at Globe Life Field.

Machado has done enough over 15 seasons to earn some grace. And on Saturday, the trust was rewarded fivefold. He drove in five runs with two extra-base hits, including a decisive three-run homer in the 10th inning.

In their past two games, the Padres, who average an MLB-worst 3.8 runs a game, have collected 13 runs on 19 hits.

Who says the Padres can’t score runs?

“In key situations when I’m up there, you still have to be afraid,” Machado said. “I can do damage like I did today. I have all the confidence in the world that I’m going to be good. To have your manager put you up there every single day in the lineup, obviously you want to do the best for him. So you keep battling, you keep trying to get out of things, and that’s what I do every single day. I come in here, try to work, and try to get out of it.”

Adrian Morejon (6-1) earned the victory in relief, striking out five over two shutout innings. Mason Miller, in his first game back from bereavement leave, earned his 20th save for the 39-36 Padres, who are fighting to stay in the NL Wild Card race.

Machado’s double in the third scored Fernando Tatis Jr. Machado was credited with another RBI on a groundout in the Padres’ game-tying two-run eighth.

With Tatis on second base to start the 10th, Samad Taylor walked, setting up Machado, who drove a 2-0 pitch into the left-center-field seats. Joe Ross, who took the loss for the Rangers, was having trouble throwing strikes.

“When [Machado] went on deck, I slapped him on the butt and said, ‘Do it like you’ve done it a million times’ because he has done it a million times,’ Stammen said. “We’ve come to expect Manny to do that every single time that he comes to the plate and that’s unrealistic, but he’s had the career he’s had, he is the person that he is, he has the confidence in himself that is undeniable and that makes him believe in those situations he’s the best man at the plate.”

Right-hander Walker Buehler gave up one run over 5 1/3 innings in his 15th start of the season. Entering the game, he had seemed to find a groove, giving up only three runs and four walks in 15 2/3 innings. Hitters, however, were still making plenty of contact (18 hits).

Contact wasn’t an issue for Buehler through five innings on Saturday, though, allowing just three hits. The sixth is when he began to unravel, with Josh Jung lining a scorcher to left-center field for a one-out double. Wyatt Langford then blistered a pitch to left that Taylor had to go a long way to field for an RBI double.

Stammen came to get Buehler, who lowered his ERA to 3.96. Lefty Kyle Hart was brought in to navigate the dustup, striking out Brandon Nimmo and inducing a groundout from Ezequiel Duran to strand Langford at second base.

“[Buehler] just gets us off to a good start,” Stammen said. “He’s been very good early in games and allows us to get our offense going a little bit and give them a chance to score runs. He’s not giving up very many hits. He’s not walking anybody, he’s getting ahead. He’s just very efficient. He’s pitching with a lot of confidence.”

Four Padres relievers combined to allow three runs (two earned) on four hits over 4 2/3 innings, striking out 10. The only slip belonged to righty Jason Adam, who gave up a two-run homer to Jake Burger in the seventh.

But down 3-1, the Padres battled back in the eighth.

Tatis doubled to start the inning, moved to third when Taylor hit a sacrifice bunt and reached on an error, and scored on Machado’s groundout. With two outs, Jackson Merrill, who had three hits, singled home Taylor from third to tie the game.

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New Zealand rout England by 253 runs: second men’s Test, day five – live | England v New Zealand 2026

Key events

Stokes to return as captain at Trent Bridge

A bit more from Brendon McCullum.

[Will Ben Stokes return as captain at Trent Bridge] Yeah, at the moment that’s what we’re planning. The rest of the squad will be announced this afternoon once we’ve told a few of the lads.

[On the mixed messaging around Stokes’ mental state] People always have a difference of opinion, that’s the way things are – people read things differently. From my point of view I’ve been speaking to Ben every day since the incident and have obviously been trying to be supportive.

I think it was great he was able to play cricket this week and get some runs. He looked like he had a bit of pep in his step as well. We know a fit, firing Ben Stokes is an asset to every team in the world.

Those conversations between Stokesy and I are private; I’m not going to go into that at all.

Brendon McCullum’s verdict

It happened a bit quicker than we wanted today. My optimism knows no bounds – I thought we might be able to do something special. But New Zealand outplayed us in all three aspects and they were relentless with the ball.

I thought our tactics were pretty good across the board. We created opportunities to take wickets but we weren’t able to take them. I don’t know how many Tests have been won when you drop 10 catches.

I thought Joe did an outstanding job, working with Harry across the Test. There’s lots to be proud of and some stuff we need to tidy up. You might not get the instant gratification of a win but the young guys will be a lot better for the experience.

Match report: New Zealand win by 253 runs

Tom Latham’s reaction

It’s been a fantastic week. We managed to get our nose in front during some crucial moments and I thought we played fantastically well.

The way the bowlers were able to operate was crucial: top of off, a little bit of old-school cricket, and we managed to get the results.

We all know the talent [Glenn Phillips] has got. He’s played some crucial innings, and the way he batted against Jofra showed the ticker and the method that he has.

We thought hitting the top of off repeatedly was the best method on this surface. Henners [Matt Henry] is a pretty good exponent of that. He’s been a spearhead for us for a long period and it was nice for him to get the results.

Joe Root’s reaction

Credit to New Zealand, I thought they played really well. There were a number of moments when the game was in the balance and they won them. Fair play to them. It’s still 1-1 and there’s everything to play for at Trent Bridge.

I really enjoyed coming back into that space [as captain] and working with Baz. And it was a great opportunity for the young guys coming into the team. There were a lot of good things across the five days, but we just have to do things better for longer. If you miss eight chances, catches in particular, against a good team on a good pitch it’ll hurt you.

Glenn Phillips played really well during a really fiery spell from Jofra, who I thought was excellent throughout the Test. It was a good lesson for our batters, the way he recognised that scenario, got through a really tough spell and reaped the rewards the following morning. As a young side, we can learn from that.

When you lose a game you always think: ‘What did we do wrong?’ Sometimes that’s unfair on the opposition. They’re allowed to play well and New Zealand certainly did that.

[Do you want to put the captaincy blazer back in the garage?] We’ll see what happens in the next couple of days.

The player of the match is Matt Henry

We probably didn’t expect it to unfold like that today, but we probably saved ourselves a really hot day in the field!

[On the value of a 10-day break between Tests] It helped massively. I was just trying to regain some confidence in the body. It feels pretty bad when you let the guys down on day one, so it was great to come here and get my quota out.

The top order did some great work in challenging conditions on day one, helping the ball get soft for Glenn [Phillips] to do his thing. With the ball we talked about being relentless and offering something different from each end, because we thought it might take until the last session today.

[On Tom Blundell standing up to the stumps and the influence of the Ashes] We actually used the tactic in New Zealand a few years ago; we brought Tommy up at the Basin [Reserve in Wellington]. We talked about trying to keep guys in their crease because they wanted to walk out and get busy. Having a world-class operator like Tom is huge – you can’t do it unless you have somebody as good as him behind the stumps. He was absolutely outstanding.

[Do you have to keep your ego in check when the keeper stands up?] I’ve always said I’d rather be effective than be a hero! The main thing for us was to create pressure.

[On his role as attack leader] Ah, it’s pretty easy when you’ve got such a strong bowling group.

England lost the game on the second morning, when they mislaid the plot in the field and allowed New Zealand to get too many in the first innings. In a sense they lost this game on day four at Lord’s, but we don’t need to go over all that.

Matt Henry’s match figures of 42.1-9-109-11 are the best by a New Zealand bowler in a Test against England. He goes past Dion Nash, a criminally underrated seamer who almost bowled New Zealand to victory at Lord’s in 1994. That match also featured a glorious century from an ageing Martin Crowe.

Since you asked, Sir Richard Hadlee took a couple of ten-forsagainst England: Wellington 1978, Trent Bridge 1986.

That was a crushing victory for New Zealand, a triumph of experience, class and equilibrium. It’s hard to write about New Zealand without inadvertently patronising them, but bloody hell they are good.

Jordan Cox made 27 and 25 in his debut Test – nothing scores, it’s true, but there were plenty of signs that he might have what it takes at this level. He certainly has the strokeplay.

Matt Henry has taken 5-3 this morning to finish with 6-29 in the innings and 11-109 in the match. I don’t know if that’s the best performance of his career, but it’s ~~in the top one~~ right up there. And it couldn’t have happened to a nicer bloke.

New Zealand win by 253 runs!

WICKET! England 209 all out (Cox b Henry 25) New Zealand didn’t need Baker on strike. Henry spears in a yorker that beats Cox’s premediated sweep to hit middle stump and end the match. Canny, classy bowling from a late-blooming giant of world cricket.

New Zealand’s Matt Henry celebrates with the ball after taking six wickets to win the Second Test. Photograph: Ben Whitley/PA

58th over: England 209-9 (Cox 25, Baker 0) Cox charges Jamieson and pulls a mighty six over midwicket. A clever clip through square leg brings three more and allows him to keep strike. Somebody shouted for O’Rourke to leave it, as a boundary would have meant Baker being on strike at the start of the next over, but he either didn’t hear or ignored it.

57th over: England 200-9 (Cox 16, Baker 0) This has been a rewarding series for lovers of skilful seam bowling. Ollie Robinson was player of the match at Lord’s; Matt Henry will surely win the award here.

Henry has a full over at Baker, who solidly plays out a maiden. Baker is cut from the tailend cloth as Will O’Rourke, a No11 who doesn’t score runs but has a decent defensive technique.

“The Kiwi cricket team has a decent claim to be the most likeable bunch in international sport (and ALWAYS has done),” writes Robert Wilson. “That unassuming moral rectitude, that reflexive self-deprecation and team-ethos primacy is permanently standard. They’re almost impossible to dislike. And this fluffy cuteness can obscure their brilliance and power. They’ve been a hard ask for a decade but they never seem to shake off Graham Gooch’s (admittedly fabulous) Ilford 2nd XI slur.

“Amid the obscenity of the Trumpian Bread & Circuses kickball tournament in the US, it’s cleansing to see a bunch of blokes who could all be that neighbour who uncomplainingly lends you a perfectly maintained and beautifully oiled power-tool that you don’t know how to use. And make no mistake, they have absolutely ****ing CANED England.

“I’ve enjoyed every over of it.”

I couldn’t put it nearly as well myself.

56th over: England 200-9 (Cox 16, Baker 0) Cox charges Jamieson, who drops the ball shorter as a result. Cox improvises nicely to uppercut over the slips for four and bring up England’s 200. He is a serious talent.

55th over: England 196-9 (Cox 12, Baker 0) With Cox on strike, the field is spread for Matt Henry’s hat-trick ball. I was going to say, ‘That’s a bit weird, Tom Latham should be sacked,’ etc, but on reflection I like that it captures New Zealand’s side-over-self philosophy.

Cox defends the hat-trick ball. This time he gives Baker the last two deliveries to survive. Good boy that he is, Baker obliges.

54th over: England 195-9 (Cox 11, Baker 0) Jordan Cox gives Sonny Baker one ball to survive. Good boy that he is, Baker obliges.

“I don’t get all the pessimism,” says Paul Griffin. “In addition to your list of joyful vignettes, the test has been a Tactical Great Leap Forward for cricket and English sport in general. We have established that deploying your captain out of position, in the north-east of England idyll to be precise, is not optimal. Now this is resolved, the only way is up. I hear Tommy Tuchel has abandoned his thought experiment of sending Harry Kane to the Holy Island of Lindisfarne for the next World Cup game. Kissinger, Kasparov, and Sun Tzu must be looking on in envy.”

53rd over: England 192-9 (Cox 8, Baker 0) That was the last ball of the over, so there may be no hat-trick ball. In the last five years, Matt Henry has taken 114 Test wickets at – and you’ll like this – an average of 19.70.

WICKET! England 192-9 (Tongue c Mitchell b Henry 0)

You ripper! Matt Henry has taken his first ten-for in Test cricket, and he’s on a hat-trick as well. Josh Tongue edged another immaculate delivery to first slip and was taken by Daryl Mitchell.

Henry snaps his head back and roars with delight. Honestly, this is about as good as flat-pitch seam bowling gets.

WICKET! England 192-8 (Henry b Fisher 0)

Even when he doesn’t hit the stumps, Matt Henry hits the stumps. Fisher feels for a slightly wider ball and drags it back onto leg stump to give Henry his ninth wicket of the match. He is so good.

England Fast Bowler Matt Fisher is bowled by New Zealand All-Rounder Matt Henry. Photograph: Chris Foxwell/ProSports/Shutterstock

52nd over: England 192-7 (Cox 8, Fisher 0) Cox times Jamieson nicely to the cover boundary. The game is done, and Cox is unlikely to play at Trent Bridge on Thursday, but it’s still an important innings because he can put some credit in the bank.

“I enjoyed Andy Bull’s article,” writes Tom van der Gucht. “McCullum has brought some amazing moments for us all, but most coaches seem to have ‘their method’ that works brilliantly until it doesn’t.

“Although I’m drifting off cricket and across sports, I was rewatching Winning Time and the coaching revolution at the LA Lakers lately and it reminded me how few coaches are able to mimic Ferguson with Man U and sustain success over such a long period.

I wonder whether the ECB will turn to what’s viewed as a safe pair of hands if McCullum goes. Could we be preparing ourselves for the third coming of Peter Moores… county cricket’s top coach of the 21st century and one of life’s good guys?”

If McCullum gets sacked after the Ashes, fine, but to damn him based on this game, after all the upheaval and weirdness, makes no sense to me. When history is written, I suspect the received wisdom will be that Bazball died after the India tour of 2023-24. Yas Rana’s point that McCullum was a much better fit for an experienced team in the doldrums than an inexperienced team feels spot on.

51st over: England 188-7 (Cox 4, Fisher 0) A double-wicket maiden from Henry, and why not.

WICKET! England 188-7 (Archer b Henry 0)

Make that eight wickets for Matt Henry. Jofra Archer has no chance with a wicket-to-wicket grubber and is bowled second ball for nought.

England Fast Bowler Jofra Archer (22)is bowled by New Zealand All-Rounder Matt Henry . Photograph: Chris Foxwell/ProSports/Shutterstock

WICKET! England 188-6 (Root LBW b Henry 77)

The end is nigh. Root plays defensively at an off-cutter from Henry that snakes past the inside edge to hit the back pad. He reviews, just in case, but that was a clean LBW. Henry has dismissed the big two, Root and Brook, in both innings has match figures of 38.1-6-108-7 on a flat pitch. It’s been a wicket-to-wicket masterclass.

The finger goes up: Matt Henry of New Zealand appeals and dismisses Joe Root. Photograph: Philip Brown/Getty Images

50th over: England 188-5 (Root 77, Cox 4) Cox hits Kyle Jamieson through the covers for three before Root edges a good ball on the bounce to second slip.

“Good morning, Rob and Happy Solstice,” says John Starbuck. “We are at the peak of summer but at this rate it won’t be remembered fondly by future generations, going by the pretty miserable performance of England cricket. What consolation can we take from this match?”

Crikey, loads. Jofra Archer v Glenn Phillips, Matt Henry’s magnificence, the first Test century by a known ADHDer, Sonny Baker’s joie de vivre, Matt Fisher’s fifty, Harry Brook’s madcap genius, Joe Root’s 14,000th Test run, the (seeming) improvement in Ben Stokes’s mental health, Rachin Ravindra’s strokeplay, Henry Nicholls shuffling into the spotlight. I could go on, but luckily for you there’s some cricket to talk about. And a wicket.

49th over: England 184-5 (Root 76, Cox 1) Henry sets the agenda with a perfect first delivery on off stump that is defended awkwardly by Root. After Root takes a single later in the over, Jordan Cox gets off the mark from his 15th delivery. Can’t imagine that has happened too often.

Tanya Aldred

Ben Stokes and Gus Atkinson have been withdrawn from the remainder of Durham and Surrey’s ongoing County Championship matches at the request of the England and Wales Cricket Board [ECB].

“Ben Stokes has been withdrawn from the remainder of Durham’s County Championship match against Northamptonshire at the request of the ECB,” a club statement on X said. “Colin Ackermann will replace Stokes in the Durham 11.”

Neither player was selected for the second Test after they broke the team curfew celebrating England’s first Test win against New Zealand at Lord’s. The interim captain, Joe Root, was then handed an inexperienced side who have struggled against New Zealand at The Oval, and start Sunday needing 281 more runs to win with just five wickets in hand.

The players are ready to roll. Matt Henry will open up to Joe Root.

England this, England that. It’s time to talk about New Zealand, who calmly parked their defeat at Lord’s and have quietly outclassed England in the second Test.

Glenn Phillips’ century, the first in Test cricket by a known ADHDer, was a multi-faceted masterpiece; Henry Nicholls played an innings of which Kane Williamson would be proud; and Matt Henry has been quite majestic.

There’s so much more to his performance than numbers, but the detail of Harry Brook’s performance provides a snapshot of Henry’s brilliance.

Brook v Henry 4 runs, 19 balls, 2 wickets, SR 21
Brook v the rest 78 runs, 67 balls, 0 wickets, SR 116

Imagine restricting Harry Brook to a strike-rate of 21, never mind dismissing him twice at an average of 2.

Simon Burnton

Josh Tongue admitted England have missed the influence of Ben Stokes after a day in which they crumbled to the brink of defeat in the second Test against New Zealand at the Oval. While they were doing so the team’s full-time captain, forced out of international duty for disciplinary reasons, was 275 miles north at Chester-le-Street, scoring a swashbuckling 95 for Durham in the County Championship.

England ended the fourth day on 182 for five, a distant 281 from victory, after the tourists scored 362 in their second innings. The home side have worked this week under the interim captaincy of Joe Root, on whose back their slender hopes once again lie, after he became the second player in Test history to pass 14,000 career runs on his way to an unbeaten 75,

“Yeah, we’ve missed him,” Tongue said of Stokes. “He’s an unbelievable player. Obviously I made my debut when he was captain, so I’ve got huge respect for Stokesy and it’s always nice seeing him get some runs as well. But obviously we’ve got a lot of leaders in our team. Rooty has stepped up as captain, he’s obviously an unbelievable player and an unbelievable leader.”

Andy Bull

At the end of the fourth day’s play here the abiding question wasn’t whether England could complete a record-breaking fourth innings chase or even if they could bat the match out to secure the draw. It was why everyone is still watching an England team coached by Brendon McCullum six months after he ought to have moved on from the job.

The way we tell it in this country, McCullum’s backstory as England coach begins on 2 January 2013 when, in his first match as New Zealand’s Test captain, the team were bowled out for 45 by South Africa at Cape Town. Legend has it this was the watershed Test. In a management meeting that evening, McCullum laid out his ideas about the way the game should be played. The hard-charging, happy-go-lucky approach that has characterised England’s cricket in the past four years was born right here, when, New Zealand’s coach, Mike Hesson, said, McCullum was first empowered “to do the job the way he wanted it done”.

There is a chapter missing in this version. Everyone involved in New Zealand cricket knows it by rote, but it’s not often discussed in England. It’s all about what happened in the months running up to that match, when McCullum’s predecessor as captain, Ross Taylor, was forced out of his job by Hesson, who was an old teammate of McCullum’s.

Here’s more on the news that Ben Stokes is back, baby

Ali Martin

What do you get if you pick three debutants, two more with one cap each, a strike-bowler who is returning to Test cricket after two solid months of sending down four-over spells in India, and hand the captaincy to a guy who has spent the past four years with the job happily in his rear-view mirror?

Throw in a seasoned opposition side like Tom Latham’s New Zealand and the answer, England have discovered, is the need to knock off a monstrous fourth-innings target of 463 – or bat out nearly five sessions – to avoid a defeat that will invite questions beyond simply that optimistic selection.

Stokes withdrawn from Durham match

So, about that third Test. Ben Stokes and Gus Atkinson have been withdrawn from Durham and Surrey’s ongoing County Championship matches at the request of the ECB. The services of Benoit Blanc will not be required on this matter.

Do me a quick favour: close your eyes and just imagine the noise when Stokes walks out to bat at Trent Bridge. It might even register on the Headingley 2019ometer.

Preamble

This shouldn’t take long. New Zealand need five wickets to wrap up an emphatic victory at The Oval and set up a mouth-moistening series decider at Trent Bridge later in the week. The only teeny-tiny hope for England is the not dissimilar precedent of Aukland 2013. On that occasion they were four down going into the last day, with one of the not-out batters a pre-pubescent Joe Root one of the not-out batters.

They saved that Test, and the series, with a performance of immense defiance led by Matt Prior. (Funny how things work out. At 31, Prior seemed to be moving inexorably towards greatness; 18 months later he was done as a Test cricketer.)

Realistically, on a day like today, ‘remember when’ is the lowest form of conversation. England are going to lose – decisively, deservedly – and tomorrow’s headlines will be about the future. One subject will be discussed more than any other: what part, if any, Ben Stokes and the rest of the absent Oval Five play in that series decider.

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