Cricket / First Test: Malcolm under threat as England coast home: Below-par paceman faces the Illingworth axe as DeFreitas' accuracy spearheads the emphatic felling of frail New Zealand

New Zealand . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .251 and 226

England . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .567-8 dec

England win by innings and 90 runs

THE Rev Andrew Wingfield-Digby is clearly not a vindictive man, otherwise he might have ordered the kind of deluge that once prompted Noah to deduce that there was little prospect of play before tea. Raymond Illingworth's dismissal of the spiritual adviser installed by Ted Dexter was the inevitable by-product of the hard-nosed pragmatist succeeding the ethereal dreamer, but the reverend might soon find alternative employment in the New Zealand dressing-room.

There was an early air of levity at the ground yesterday morning, when Alec Stewart was wandering around the pavilion wearing a dog collar, but England were serious enough when it mattered, and knocked over the last three New Zealand wickets in an hour and a half to win by an innings and 90 runs. New Zealand, it has to be said, are so poor that this can almost be regarded as a close result.

They were written off as soon as they arrived in England and, as their captain, Ken Rutherford, conceded yesterday, they have lived up to their pre-series billing. Rutherford also said that some of his players had been adversely affected by 'some of the rubbish written about them in the newspapers', but the man of the match award was still given to Graham Gooch rather than one of the gang of former players pounding out the vitriol in the press box.

Rutherford, in a tongue-in- cheek kind of way, also offered a hint that he, too, thinks he is in charge of a not terribly accomplished team. Asked whether he was depressed at being captain of 'this particular ship', Rutherford inquired as to whether the word was 'ship', or something sounding quite like it.

Illingworth, after confessing that Wingfield-Digby might have been reinstated had it rained all day, is a far more earthy character than Dexter. If his predecessor as chairman of the England selectors was one for staring into the tea leaves, Illy is more the sort for buying tea bags, and only those on special offer. All he has effectively done is invite the Test and County Cricket Board to consider whether Wingfield-Digby's expenses would be better spent elsewhere. Besides which, when England are winning, Illy would not want the reverend's boss getting any of the credit.

He has not, though, banned mobile phones during the hours of play ('that was the captain's idea'); neither has he ruled out, being the realist he is, dialling up one or two of the players' portables next weekend to inform them that they have not survived for the second Test at Lord's on Thursday week.

'Let's be fair,' he said. 'New Zealand are not a strong side. We've won by an innings, which is as much as you can ask, and I'm very, very pleased. On the other hand, it does not mean to say that victory automatically means same again in terms of selection.'

The one player most obviously under threat is Devon Malcolm, who on his debut here in 1989 was accorded the post-match accolade by Lord Ted (or was it Ted Lord?) of 'who can forget Malcolm Devon?' Well, Illingworth can for one. His views on Malcolm's bowling here were not over-complimentary.

Malcolm never remotely threatened to knock over the New Zealand tail yesterday morning, and after Angus Fraser had finally broken an eighth-wicket partnership of 54 in more than two hours between Adam Parore and Matthew Hart, it was Phillip DeFreitas, replacing Malcolm, who wrapped up the game with the final two wickets.

DeFreitas produced a good off- cutter to induce a thin inside-edge from Dion Nash to the wicketkeeper, and then got one to move a shade the other way for Parore to snick another catch to Steven Rhodes. DeFreitas, who finished with match figures of 9 for 165, should have had Parore in his opening over when Craig White dropped a routine catch at backward point, although his form has yo-yoed far too often for any confident predictions of a long- term run in the side.

For the moment, though, DeFreitas' form certainly precludes any recall for Chris Lewis, although Lewis, like Darren Gough, is not thought by Illingworth to be fit enough for consideration at Lord's. Definitely out of the running is Andrew Caddick, who will not be able to bowl for a fortnight after a shoulder operation.

Mike Atherton, the England captain, shared Illingworth's view that 'you can only beat whatever is put in front of you', but New Zealand's tail - in both innings - resisted for long enough to suggest that, even with their shortcomings, a draw should have been comfortably within their compass. That in itself should be enough to stop anyone getting too carried away.

COMPLETE TRENT BRIDGE SCOREBOARD

(New Zealand won toss)

NEW ZEALAND - First Innings

B A Young c Hick b DeFreitas. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15

(82 min, 57 balls, 1 four)

B R Hartland c Hick b DeFreitas. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6

(37 min, 32 balls, 1 four)

* K R Rutherford lbw b DeFreitas. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25

(98 min, 71 balls, 2 fours)

M D Crowe c Rhodes b White. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16

(32 min, 29 balls, 2 fours)

S P Fleming c White b DeFreitas. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .54

(146 min, 102 balls, 9 fours)

S A Thomson c Hick b Fraser. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14

(45 min, 36 balls, 3 fours)

A C Parore c Rhodes b Malcolm. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .38

(111 min, 83 balls, 3 fours)

G R Larsen c Fraser b Such. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8

(49 min, 30 balls, 1 four)

M N Hart c Hick b Fraser. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .36

(96 min, 77 balls, 7 fours)

D J Nash c Rhodes b Malcolm. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19

(85 min, 61 balls, 2 fours)

H T Davis not out. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .0

(5 min, 5 balls)

Extras (lb6 nb14). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20

Total (402 min, 93.4 overs). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .251

Fall: 1-13 (Hartland), 2-37 (Young), 3-66 (Crowe), 4-78 (Rutherford), 5-108 (Thomson), 6-168 (Fleming), 7-188 (Parore), 8-194 (Larsen), 9-249 (Hart), 10-251 (Nash).

Bowling: Malcolm 17.4-5-45-2 (4-1-9-0, 4-0-12-0, 6-3-10-1, 3.4-1-14-1); Fraser 21-10-40-2 (nb6) (7-3-12-0, 10-3-28-1, 4-4-0-1); DeFreitas 23-4-94-4 (nb15) (7-1-21-2, 7-3-22-1, 6-0-32-1, 3-0-19-0); Such 19-7-28-1 (3-2-3-0, 3-1-2-0, 5-0-13-0, 7-4-9-1, 1-0-1-0); White 13-3-38-1 (6-1-21-1, 1-1-0-0, 6-1-17-0).

Fleming's 50: 136 min, 98 balls, 8 fours.

ENGLAND - First Innings

* M A Atherton c Parore b Larsen. . . . . . . . . . . . . .101

(323 min, 264 balls, 13 fours)

A J Stewart c Larsen b Davis. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8

(21 min, 14 balls, 1 four)

G A Gooch b Nash. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .210

(417 min, 317 balls, 29 fours)

G A Hick b Nash. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18

(51 min, 43 balls, 3 fours)

R A Smith run out. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .78

(223 min, 168 balls, 10 fours)

C White c Larsen b Hart. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19

(54 min, 47 balls, 3 fours)

S J Rhodes c Thomson b Nash. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .49

(170 min, 140 balls, 2 fours, 2 sixes)

P A J DeFreitas not out. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .51

(89 min, 59 balls, 7 fours)

A R C Fraser c Fleming b Larsen. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8

(21 min, 13 balls, 1 four)

Extras (lb9 w6 nb10). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25

Total (for 8 dec, 691 min, 174.4 overs). . . . . . .567

Fall): 1-16 (Stewart), 2-279 (Atherton), 3-314 (Hick), 4-375 (Gooch), 5-414 (White), 6-482 (Smith), 7-528 (Rhodes), 8-567 (Fraser).

Did not bat: P M Such, D E Malcolm.

Bowling: Davis 21-0-93-1 (nb14 w2) (5-0-21-1, 5-0-21-0, 5-0-26-0, 6-0-25-0); Nash 36-5-153-2 (nb3 w1) (3-0-12-0, 6-1-24-0, 7-1-25-0, 5-1-27-1, 5-2-15-0, 6-0-28-0, 4-0-22-1); Larsen 44.4-11-116-2 (4-0-15-0, 3-0-16-0, 8-4-11-0, 11-4-15-1, 5-0-19-0, 9-2-22-0, 4.4-1-18-1); Hart 35-7-123-1 (2-1-6-0, 5-0-26-0, 6-1-32-0, 4-0-13-0, 1-0-2-0, 16-5-37-1,1-0-7-0); Thomson 38-6-73-1 (12-1-28-0, 2-0-4-0, 23-5-38-1, 1-0-3-0).

Atherton's 50: 121 min, 80 balls, 7 fours. 100: 297 min, 243 balls, 13 fours.

Gooch's 50: 94 min, 87 balls, 7 fours. 100: 210 min, 170 balls, 14 fours. 150: 294 min, 219 balls, 23 fours. 200: 391 min, 294 balls, 28 fours.

Smith's 50: 168 min, 121 balls, 6 fours.

DeFreitas' 50: 88 min, 58 balls, 7 fours.

NEW ZEALAND - Second Innings

B R Hartland lbw b DeFreitas. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22

(46 min, 31 balls, 3 fours)

B A Young c Rhodes b Fraser. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .53

(114 min, 87 balls, 10 fours)

* K R Rutherford c Atherton b Such. . . . . . . . . . . . .14

(65 min, 57 balls, 2 fours)

M D Crowe lbw b DeFreitas. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28

(98 min, 73 balls, 4 fours)

S P Fleming c White b Hick. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11

(57 min, 53 balls, 1 four)

S A Thomson c White b Such. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6

(43 min, 37 balls, 1 four)

A C Parore c Rhodes b DeFreitas. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .42

(216 min, 159 balls, 3 fours)

G R Larsen c Stewart b DeFreitas. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2

(18 min, 14 balls)

M N Hart lbw b Fraser. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22

(128 min, 109 balls, 2 fours)

D J Nash c Rhodes b DeFreitas. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5

(50 min, 33 balls)

H T Davis not out. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .0

(7 min, 5 balls)

Extras (lb1 nb20). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21

Total (430 min, 106.3 overs). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .226

Fall: 1-59 (Hartland), 2-95 (Rutherford), 3-95 (Young), 4-122 (Fleming), 5-141 (Crowe), 6-141 (Thomson), 7-147 (Larsen), 8-201 (Hart), 9-224 (Nash), 10-226 (Parore).

Bowling: Malcolm 10-2-39-0 (3-0-25-0, 2-1-1-0, 5-1-13-0); Fraser 23-8-53-2 (nb5) (3-0-16-0, 8-5-9-1, 4-1-10-0, 8-2-18-1); DeFreitas 22.3-4-71-5 (nb15) (8-0-42-1, 7-2-15-2, 3-1-6-0, 4.3-1-8-2); Such 34-12-50-2 (15-5-20-1, 5-3-4-0, 10-3-18-1, 2-1-6-0, 2-0-2-0); Hick 14-6-12-1 (6-3-7-1, 3-1-2-0, 4-2-2-0,

1-0-1-0); White 3-3-0-0 (one spell).

Progress (final day): New ball taken: 184-7, 87 overs. 200: 366 min, 92.4 overs. Innings closed: 12.30pm.

Young's 50: 87 min, 68 balls, 10 fours.

Umpires: H D Bird, S A Bucknor, M J Kitchen (TV replays).

Match referee: C H Lloyd.

ENGLAND WON BY AN INNINGS AND 90 RUNS

Man of the match: G A Gooch.

Adjudicator: Sir Richard Hadlee.

SECOND TEST: 16 to 20 June (Lord's).

THIRD TEST: 30 June to 5 July (Old Trafford).

(Photograph omitted)