Cricket: Strauss Ton and Panesar Six Wicket Haul Inspire England To Kiwi Victory

Opening batsman Andrew Strauss hit a gritty 100 to support Monty Panesar's earlier heroics with the ball to hand England a victory in a Test match which only 24 hours ago seemed to be totally out of reach.

A middle-order collapse from the home side left the Black Caps with a seemingly unassailable 179 run first-innings lead going into the afternoon of yesterday's play.

But an inspired performance from England spinner Monty Panesar limited New Zealand to 114 all out from their second stint at the crease, giving his side hope of an unlikely victory.

Panesar struck six times, returning career-best Test figures of 6-37 off 17 overs to swing the momentum back in England's favour on a day which saw 15 wickets fall on a seemingly unplayable pitch.

With the target now a much more likely 294 from the final innings, England still needed a record Old Trafford run chase to overturn a resilient New Zealand side.

Unfortunately for the Kiwis, their captain Daniel Vettori could not repeat his first-innings performance as top-order batsmen Strauss, Cook, Vaughan and Pietersen put on the meat of the runs to take the pressure off the remaining batsmen and see their side home safely, ultimately winning by six wickets with four sessions to spare.

The highlight of England's batting performance was undoubtedly opening batsman Andrew Strauss, whose defiant century put England in the driving seat and proved many of his doubters wrong, staying at the crease for over four and a half hours and keeping the runs flowing steadily.

A sensational Test match which could have gone either way will leave the Black Caps ruing their second innings performance, throwing away victory from a comfortable winning position.

England's only concern will surely be the form of the middle order, with neither Ian Bell nor Paul Collingwood looking comfortable at the crease when knocking off the remaining 48 runs.

The selectors could well look to Ravi Bopara or Owais Shah and leave fan-favourite Collingwood time to perfect his game in the county league.

The win gives England a 1-0 lead in the series, with the final Test to be played at Trent Bridge commencing Thursday 5th June.