'England a real challenge under Ben Stokes'- New Zealand coach Gary Stead

Ahead of the 3-match Test series between New Zealand and England, Blackcaps coach Gary Stead has revealed that his side will not be taking the hosts lightly. England have had a rough 12 months witnessing a change in leadership and a vacant head coach position. Ben Stokes has replaced Joe Root as Test skipper after the latter resigned last month. 

Speaking with stuff.co.nz, Stead said, "Probably the opposite. I see them being more of a threat, to be honest. Whenever that happens, you usually see a bit of an immediate lift around the team's performance who want to prove things, I guess, to the new leaders of the group."

Stead stated that Ben Stokes leading England only added steel to their Test side and is a challenge for the visitors. He elaborates, "I expect Ben Stokes will add a little bit of steel to their group, and I think they'll be a real challenge. But there's a new captain there in Ben Stokes, and he'll be having some expectations around the group that he will want to get up and running and how he wants the team run."

Stead seemed unfazed about England's non-appointment of a coach with the Test just a month away. However, he hinted that an interim coach was a possibility as well.

Stead's immediate concern remained the unavailability of middle-order batter Henry Nicholls, who picked up a calf injury at training. Nicholls has been the mainstay of the Test unit, averaging 40.36 from 46 Tests, with 8 tons to his name.

The first Test between the two sides will take place at the iconic Lord's Stadium, followed by the second at Trent Bridge and the third at Leeds.

England are languishing right at the bottom of the ICC Test Championship table with 18 points. Defending champions New Zealand placed sixth in the rankings with 28 points. 

Talking about Kiwis' chances of playing in a second consecutive Test Championship final, Stead stated, "We were in a situation two years ago of knowing that to have a chance of playing in the World Test Championship final, we needed to win four games."