Bairstow made 136 off just 90 balls, while Ben Stokes ended unbeaten on 75 as England chased down 299 in exactly 50 overs on the final day
Trent Bridge: New Zealand 553 & 284, England 539 & 299-5 - England win by five wickets
Jonny Bairstow produced a remarkable onslaught in partnership with Ben Stokes to lead England to a five-wicket victory over New Zealand at Trent Bridge, winning the series in the process.
Bairstow eventually fell for 136 off just 90 deliveries, but by then England only needed 27 runs to win, having turned a game that was in the balance when the pair came together at 93 for 4 in pursuit of 299 for a second successful run-chase in succession.
England had won just one of their previous 17 Tests before Stokes replaced Joe Root as captain and Brendon McCullum arrived as head coach, but their commitment to an aggressive style of play was rewarded on a thrilling afternoon in Nottingham, in front of a capacity crowd after tickets had been made available for free on the previous evening.
New Zealand started the day with three wickets still in hand, and England were initially frustrated by the stickability of the tourists' lower order.
Eventually, Matt Henry and Kyle Jamieson were bounced out within two overs of each other by Stuart Broad, before some enterprising hitting from Trent Boult delayed the hosts further. Boult became the leading run-scorer from No.11 in Test history during his cameo, and his dismissal – giving James Anderson his second wicket of the day – signalled the start of a tantalising chase.
England had spoken overnight and on the fifth morning about their keenness to give any target a go – a stark contrast to 12 months earlier when they turned down the carrot dangled by New Zealand at Lord's and instead played out a sedate draw. But from the moment Alex Lees drove the first two balls of the fourth innings through cover for consecutive boundaries, a different mindset was evident.
He looked in fine form, driving firmly through the off-side to be not out at lunch, with Zak Crawley the only casualty of the mini-session beforehand. The Kent man fell without scoring, edging a good delivery from the excellent Boult to Tim Southee at slip.
Bairstow and Stokes put on 179 in 20 overs together (Lindsey Parnaby/AFP via Getty Images)
On the other side of the interval, Ollie Pope fell for 18, undone during a fine spell from Matt Henry, who briefly looked primed to turn the game in New Zealand's favour.
And that was even more the case when Boult caught Root off his own bowling to end the former England skipper's involvement in a game where it was assumed that he would have the final word. That was 56 for 3 and England, with their long tail, would have been forgiven for altering their approach.
But Lees continued to assert himself, striking his first Test six against Michael Bracewell, before offering Southee his solitary wicket of a chastening week. But that success brought together Bairstow and Stokes, whose partnership spanned 20.1 overs for 179 runs.
Bairstow smashed seven sixes, including five in a four-over spell immediately after tea during which England added 59 runs, and that period knocked the stuffing out of New Zealand, whose efforts to bounce out Bairstow failed comprehensively.
During their brutal stand, England's greatest threat appeared to be an injury to Stokes' knee, which significantly hindered his movement and briefly caused a mix-up when Bairstow was on 99 and closing in on the record of England's fastest-ever Test ton, on which he ultimately missed out narrowly. But Stokes continued to walk the walk, charging the seamers to nail multiple sixes down the ground.
Fittingly, after Bairstow was caught behind, it was Stokes who hit the winning runs – unbeaten on 75 – cutting through cover-point in fine style and raising his arms in celebration.
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