England seamer Sonny Baker was relieved with his debut in the second Test against New Zealand at The Oval, after a promising display on day one.
He was one of three debutants, alongside Jordan Cox and James Rew.
Baker had previously endured difficult white-ball introductions. On ODI debut against South Africa in September 2025 he returned 0 for 76 from seven overs, and in his T20 debut against Ireland later that month he took 0 for 52.
However, his Test start was more encouraging after England opted to bowl first. He struck in his seventh over, dismissing Rachin Ravindra, who edged to Jacob Bethell at gully, before removing Daryl Mitchell, caught by Emilio Gay at short mid-wicket.
By stumps he had 2 for 63 from 15 overs as New Zealand reached 291 for 7 from 77 overs, with Tom Blundell top-scoring on 51 and Glenn Phillips unbeaten on 49.
“I’m so thankful to have a proper debut that is reflective of where I’m at. My biggest learning from the Ireland debut was I felt like I wasn’t being myself,” Baker said, as reported by BBC Sport.
“Even last night I was struggling to eat, and fuelling as a fast bowler is super important. This morning I felt the anxiety build up in my stomach.
“I was pretty honest with people that I was pretty nervous going into the day. Once you start warming up, everything goes away and you get stuck in. It’s actually been great.
“The lads have tried to put that behind us and deal with the situation as it is. The relaxed nature of the environment really helps from a nerves point of view.”
