After New Zealand's heavy loss to England in the first Test, captain Tom Latham downplayed the importance of extra fielding practice despite his team's costly mistakes, including dropping eight catches. Latham himself dropped three chances, which allowed key England players—Harry Brook, Ben Stokes, Ben Duckett, and Brydon Carse—to capitalize and add a combined 231 runs after their reprieves. Brook's 171 played a crucial role in England's 8-wicket victory, which gave them a 151-run lead on the first innings.

Latham acknowledged the "unfortunate" nature of the errors but emphasized that small margins in cricket can have a significant impact on the result. Despite the loss, which came after New Zealand's historic 3-0 series win in India, Latham expressed confidence that fielding wouldn’t be a major focus going into the second Test in Wellington. He stated that the team didn’t feel the need to over-emphasize the issue, acknowledging the need to improve but believing the team could bounce back in the upcoming match.