Watch: Stylish Glenn Phillips dons sunglasses to survive Archer’s fire at The Oval
New Zealand all-rounder Glenn Phillips produced one of the most eye-catching moments of the opening day of the second Test at The Oval when he donned sunglasses to face Jofra Archer’s ruthless spell. Phillips finished unbeaten on 49 as New Zealand reached 291 for 7 at stumps after England substitute Joe Root opted to bowl first on the green surface.
Glenn Phillips wearing glasses while batting against England in the 2nd Test.
– Phillips confronts Jofry Archer’s bouncers with GLASSES. pic.twitter.com/ysrOWTPSIX— Maina Singh (@Maina_Singhx77) June 17, 2026
The New Zealand batsman called for sunglasses in the 67th over after struggling with sunlight reflecting off the visor during the last over. The change immediately caught the attention of the people on the ground, but Phillips soon had a bigger challenge to deal with.
Archer, brought back for the fourth spell after Phillips took advantage of the free bowling from debutant Sonny Baker, went after him with a flurry of short deliveries. The first ball Phillips faced wearing sunglasses soared and hit him on the shoulder.
The opponent grew stronger as Archer continued to pepper him with bouncers. One delivery flew past Phillips’ head and left him sprawled on the pitch. Moments later he looked towards the New Zealand dressing room and responded with a thumbs up, a gesture that drew laughter from his teammates.
‘I MISS SEEING GP DO WHAT GP DO’
Daryl Mitchell said the innings reflected Phillips’ personality as much as his batting ability.
“He thrives in moments like tonight: he’s entertaining, he’s wearing shades, he looks cool. He loves that stuff,” Mitchell said after the game.
“It was a really tough spell to go through, the way Jof was obviously hitting and banging the goal out there. It was great to see GP doing what GP does.”
Mitchell said the dressing room couldn’t help but smile at Phillips’ reaction after being brought down by Archer’s pace.
“When he’s on the ground giving us the thumbs up, we’re giggling away. He’s one of my good mates. We’ve played a lot of cricket with him now and it’s just great to see him doing what he’s doing and being himself on the international stage.”
Phillips arrived in England after a difficult IPL stint with Gujarat Titans, where he spent much of the season on the sidelines after losing his place to Jason Holder. However, he has been New Zealand’s most reliable batsman in the series since then.
He made 34 and 44 not out in the first Test at Lord’s as New Zealand were bowled out for 113 and 138. His unbeaten knock at The Oval again provided the visitors with valuable runs at a crucial stage of the innings.
“It’s an absolute beauty,” Mitchell said.
“He’s an energizing bunny and he’s really clear about his process and how he wants to go about things. For me, it’s really cool to see him be really present. If you ever hear him talk, he’s talking about his process and how he wants to go ball by ball.”
Mitchell also stressed the importance of Phillips remaining undefeated in the final.
“What he’s done is it’s allowed us to start again tomorrow. Hopefully putting time into the legs of their bowlers will be really important in the nature of this Test match over five days, which it looks like it could be.”
“Every partnership is going to be really important and it would be nice to hopefully get a few more in the morning and then we’ll have a go.”
The day began with Root returning to the role of captain and opting to field first. It ended with Phillips walking away unbeaten after negotiating both looks and one of England’s fastest bowlers, leaving New Zealand well into the second day.
– The end
Issued by:
Saurabh Kumar
Published on:
June 18, 2026 11:19 AM IST