England have snatched two wickets in three balls after a lengthy frustrating afternoon spell at Lord's on day two of the first Test against New Zealand.
Martin Guptill, who survived early in the innings after Mark Wood's effort was ruled a no-ball, and Tom Latham guided the tourists to 44 without loss before lunch.
After the interval, the pair continued to impress as Wood, Ben Stokes, James Anderson and Stuart Broad struggled to break their opponents' stride.
Stokes was the closest to claiming the first wicket when Latham hit to third slip, but Ian Bell dropped the ball from a two-handed catch after diving to his left.
Guptill brought up a Test 50 with a nudge off Broad, and the Black Caps were in full control as the openers claimed their first 100-run partnership since they played England in Dunedin back in March 2013.
Shortly after Latham reached 50 with a drive through extra-cover, Moeen Ali's quick delivery trapped the batsman, who left the field after hitting 59 off 98 deliveries.
Two balls later, Guptill (70) was sent packing after swinging at a wide delivery from Broad, which resulted in the ball falling into the hands of Gary Ballance.
The momentum swung in England's direction, but they were unable to add to their two wickets before tea as New Zealand ended the afternoon session on 173-2, which is 216 fewer than the hosts first-innings total of 389.
Danielle Joynson
