Sophie Ecclestone took four wickets and Nat Sciver top-scored with 59 as England bounced back from their earlier defeat to South Africa
Good fightback. The hosts weren’t happy with their poor showing earlier today but bounced back really well in this second rubber to land an important blow against New Zealand in their first head-to-head contest of the summer. Ecclestone was brilliant with her four wickets, effective and efficient each time she was brought on. The captain Knight also picked up a couple. Clinical and convincing, England have won two of three games in this tournament. Mathematically, they could still miss the final but in all reality, they are in very good shape. With that, I’ll bid you farewell. Thanks for your company throughout this doubleheader. I’ll be back with you again tomorrow from Manchester for the men’s ODI between England and Australia. Until then, go well.
Through the gate, Farrant gets her second wicket and that’s the match!
18th over: New Zealand 113-9 (Jensen 10, Tahuhu 5) Target 173 Knight racing through her final over and nearly slips through Tahuhu’s defences for a third scalp, just missing off-stump. 2/17 taken from her four, picking up wickets twice as soon as she brought herself on. That feels good as a skipper.
17th over: New Zealand 107-9 (Jensen 9, Tahuhu 0) Target 173 Great day at the office for Ecclestone - perhaps her best yet in England colours - 4-1-18-4 her return in this second game after a couple of clutch wickets in the first.
A fourth wicket for the teenager! Petersen got down on one knee and tried to take her over midwicket but Nat Sciver was there waiting and took the chance with ease. Ecclestone has two balls left to finish this off herself and grab five.
16th over: New Zealand 102-8 (Petersen 6, Jensen 6) Target 173 Jensen brings up the NZ 100 hitting Hazell down the ground, finding the rope. The spinner makes an athletic stop next ball in her follow through, warmly applauded by the healthy crowd who are staying to the end. They have been very good.
15th over: New Zealand 93-8 (Petersen 4, Jensen 0) Target 173 Big shout from the last Ecclestone ball but it is turned down. She has another over to go and with three wickets already in her kit bag she is a decent chance for five, I reckon.
There’s Sarah Taylor! To be fair, the easiest stumping she’ll get in her career after Kasperek goes for a dance and misses a good couple of metres out of the crease. Ecclestone has had an outstanding day.
For the third time across the two games today, Ecclestone slips through the gate at right-handers and into their woodwork. She’s a gun. Would you believe (I barely can) it came the ball after Sarah Taylor missed a stumping! But it didn’t matter.
14th over: New Zealand 87-6 (Kerr 3, Bezuidenhout 4) Target 173 Knight goes again and does it perfectly, cramping both players from round the wicket, conceding just the three singles. 14.33 an over needed from here, for what it is worth.
13th over: New Zealand 84-6 (Kerr 3, Bezuidenhout 1) Target 173 Should be another! Petersen miscues down the ground and Brunt makes wonderful ground running in off the long-on rope and gets there in time before spilling the diving chance. Full points for effort. With just four runs from the successful over, this game is as good as done.
Sciver gets one first ball! A tame drive from the youngster, a thick outside edge landing with Farrant at backward point who takes the regulation catch.
12th over: New Zealand 80-5 (Kerr 2, Bezuidenhout 0) Target 173 Knight closes out a fine over, just three from it. Feel a bit for Dani Hazell, deserves to be cashing in with the other spinners. Needs a bit of luck. But she’s not the type to complain.
Shrubsole takes it this time! Green had a crack but trying to make room for herself gave a catch to cover, Knight into the book for a second time in the space of nine balls. England well on their way now.
That’s why Ecclestone is so good. Earlier in the over, she was taken for consecutive boundaries across the line to midwicket by Green. But she held her nerve, slipping her quicker one through the gate of Martin from round the wicket, crashing into leg stump.
11th over: New Zealand 77-4 (Green 23, Kerr 0) Target 173
10th over: New Zealand 68-3 (Martin 16, Green 14) Target 173 Knight keeps swinging to changes with her spinners, going back to Hazell from the Botham Stand end. She deserves better from Shrubsole on the long-on rope, missing a regulation stop to concede a boundary. Taylor makes a great take/whip of the bails later in the over but Green is safe then keeps the strike down the ground. At the halfway mark, New Zealand need more than ten an over from here. Hard yards.
9th over: New Zealand 61-3 (Martin 16, Green 7) Target 173 Farrant is back and returns with a half-tracker that is creamed by Martin to the midwicket boundary. I’m sure they will go after the junior seamer here - makes sense. Nice cut from the same player later in the set but to the sweeper, Green then picking out the fielder at backward square leg. Nice change of pace to finish to beat the bat. That’ll help with confidence.
8th over: New Zealand 53-3 (Martin 10, Green 5) Target 173 Nothing wrong with this successful Knight over until the final delivery, and even that isn’t a poor ball as much as it is confident batting from Green who comes down the track and successfully beats mid-off with a well-struck drive. With it, New Zealand’s 50 is up.
Great catch! Satterthwaite smacked that back at the England captain and she took it close to her body. Second ball into the attack and she’s into the book. New Zealand in some strife with their most experienced trio already back in the shed.
7th over: New Zealand 47-2 (Martin 9, Satterthwaite 2) Target 173 Dani Hazell on for her first bowl of the innings. Martin immediately goes after her, smashing on one knee over midwicket and into the rope. They are asking on telly why Ecclestone has been taken off after such a high-quality maiden. Maybe with the left-hander Satterthwaite walking out? Plenty of runs throughout the over, every ball scored off.
“Pure pressure from England,” says Charlotte Edwards and that’s spot on. A string of dots broken only by a couple of singles into the deep, then Brunt slips one back towards the brilliant visiting captain and it’s an easy decision for the umpire. Very out. Huge wicket.
6th over: New Zealand 37-2 (Martin 2, Satterthwaite 0) Target 173 And that’s the end of the power play.
5th over: New Zealand 37-1 (Bates 22, Martin 2) Target 173 Time for spin with Sophie Ecclestone. The tall left-armer is immediately asking questions of Martin then one of the umpire with a very good leg before shout but it is sliding down. Mark Butcher on telly is comparing her action to Monty Panesar, which isn’t a bad call if you ask me. Another lbw shout next ball! A carbon copy, beating her on the inside edge but not quite straightening. Martin can’t lay a bat on her here. Classy bowling from the teenager. A maiden! She is quite outstanding.
4th over: New Zealand 37-1 (Bates 22, Martin 2) Target 173 Brunt replaces Farrant. The leader of this attack knows the drill, having played so much cricket with and against Bates over the journey. Respect shown from the White Ferns captain until she is given a bit of width, carving hard to deep backward point and getting a boundary with Farrant unable to make a tough stop.
3rd over: New Zealand 32-1 (Bates 18, Martin 1) Target 173 Shot! Shrubsole just a tad short and Bates has enough time to turn her wrists through midwicket. Then another boundary to finish the over with a neat little tuck that beats the short fine leg. Now she’s cooking.
2nd over: New Zealand 23-1 (Bates 10, Martin 0) Target 173 Bates strikes back to back fours to end the over, jumping on a short ball then leaning into a full toss, beating mid-off inside the circle. Into double figures. It isn’t overstating it to say that if Suzie Bates an be there for the full 20 overs, the visitors will more than likely win. She’s in that kind of form. It makes the next few overs very important for England.
Caught on the midwicket boundary by Wyatt! That’s a crucial moment in the game for the hosts, coming just a couple of balls after Devine hit her second six, lifting Farrant behind square with ease. But the bowler, into the team for Gunn, held her nerve and Devine picked the wrong delivery to swing at.
1st over: New Zealand 8-0 (Devine 7, Bates 1)Target 173 Right, Sophie Devine. She waits two balls before putting Shrubsole over the ropes at midwicket. She is in outrageous form since going to the top of the list in both 20 and 50 over cricket, forming a perfect partnership with her skipper Bates, who is off the mark with a single to keep the strike.
20th over: England 172-7 (Ecclestone 9, Hazell 7) Dani Hazell! A wonderful little two-ball cameo to finish! She hits to long-off and with just enough spin to deny Tahuhu who misfields on the rope. She then adds three more out to cover with some desperate running with Ecclestone. 19 from the final over. Considering the stumble they had losing three wickets about three-quarters of the way through their innings, it is a fantastic effort from the hosts. Plenty to bowl at. Back with the NZ reply at 7:10pm.
Caught at cover with a couple of balls to go but Shrubsole more than did her job. Her feet were fantastic to begin this final over dancing at Kasperek twice in a row for four then six! Through cover then over long-off! That pushed the hosts beyond the 160 they made earlier in the day.
19th over: England 153-7 (Shrubsole 10, Ecclestone 9) Shot! Ecclestone pulls Devine hard through midwicket for four. Her first ball in Test cricket in Sydney last year went for six if memory serves me correct (it usually does) so she can hold a stick. The 150 up later in the over as they strive to find the ropes again. They don’t quite manage that but the running is committed, Shrubsole turning one into two at cover. She keeps the strike for the final over as well. They did a good job taking ten runs from that set.
18th over: England 143-7 (Shrubsole 7, Ecclestone 2) Just four singles from the over. A lot of work for the bowlers with bats in their hands for England to now to stick the landing.
A fine innings comes to an end, Nat Sciver getting outside the line of off-stump in order to profit down with the slog sweep but instead she picks out the fielder on circle at short fine, Jensen taking a nice catch. It is apart a bit for England here at the death.
17th over: England 139-6 (Sciver 59, Shrubsole 5) Devine’s hat-trick ball was a missed yorker, Shrubsole clipping the low full-toss, her first ball, for four. Seven runs and two wickets from the Devine over. She has one more up her sleeve for the death.
Devine on a hat-trick! Jones tries to go over midwicket across the line but the seamer hits the top of off stump. Great fight from New Zealand.
Nice change of pace, Brunt chopping on after making room for herself.
16th over: England 132-4 (Sciver 58, Brunt 13) What a classy way to bring up a half-century, making room to lift a square drive over point. As you do. She gets there in 31 balls with half a dozen boundaries. Now a seventh, shovelling over her shoulder to fine leg. Could have departed to the next ball, spitting off an edge down to short third man, but it doesn’t go to hand. Jensen eeks out a couple of dots before Brunt keeps the strike when hitting a full toss to the fielder at long-off rather than putting it on the moon.
15th over: England 120-4 (Sciver 47, Brunt 12) Superb shot from Sciver down the ground to start the new Kerr over, lofting a checked drive one-bounce over the rope. Had she hit through the ball it may have landed back in town. The young leggie fights back well though, giving up just three other singles.
14th over: England 113-4 (Sciver 41, Brunt 11) So close! Athletic diving effort from Bezuidenhout at short third man in an effort to drag down an edge from Brunt but she isn’t quite tall enough and four runs are added. Brunt makes it two boundaries in the over, slapping inside out and beating mid-off. 12 off the over. 180-190?
13th over: England 101-4 (Sciver 39, Brunt 1) Sciver is the senior batsman out there now, hitting Kasperek for four the ball after she claimed Knight’s wicket. A further single brings up the England 100. Brunt keeps the strike with a single of her own to get off the mark.
Really good catch in the sun at deep midwicket. Knight didn’t get all of it but it was nice and high, which always complicates matters at this time of the evening. The captain is gone.
12th over: England 93-3 (Sciver 33, Knight 18) Kerr gets a second opportunity. These two taking on the field at every opportunity, Knight coming back to the danger end when Sciver took a couple to midwicket but that pressure forced an error with the frantic throw. The same fielder, though, makes a great diving stop in the deep from the next Nat Sciver slap. She’s into the 30s. From here, they should really get the 165-170 that Beaumont talked about before the game.
11th over: England 86-3 (Sciver 28, Knight 16) Bad drop! Tahuhu puts down the chance in the deep off Sciver to begin the new Bates over. Sciver emphasies how big an opportunity was blown, hitting the cover off a whip through midwicket that races away for four. Knight’s turn, making room for herself to square drive with class past point for another.
10th over: England 74-3 (Sciver 21, Knight 11) Kerr is on, from the Botham Stand End. She is well supported by her fielders early in the over when Bates saved a full-toss from going to the rope. The opposite was true later in the set, Knight gliding a top-notch wrong’un behind point to a fielder who misfields, turning a dot into a four. Eight off it.
9th over: England 66-3 (Sciver 19, Knight 5) The captain, Suzie Bates, bringing herself on and has half a shout for leg before first up against Sciver. Another over where singles are the objective. The all-rounder is hitting the ball sweetly and Knight hoping to pick up where she left off earlier, also finding the sweepers.
8th over: England 60-3 (Sciver 17, Knight 1) Five singles from the over in addition to the Beaumont wicket. Get Amelia Kerr on, I say!
Falls to the lap sweep! She plays it so well but didn’t make proper contact beyond maybe an inside edge, which deflected back onto her stumps. Huge wicket for the White Ferns!
7th over: England 55-2 (Beaumont 23, Sciver 13) A rapidly-run two gets Sciver off strike and next ball she pulls Devine hard across the line, into the gap at square leg for her first boundary. Another hard-run two into the legside shows intent and brings up England’s 50. Another four for Sciver takes her into double figures inside four balls, flat-batting a short ball to mid-on that bounces just before the fielder and skips down to the rope. There would have been a third four if not for an athletic diving stop by the captain Bates at extra cover. 13 from the over, all to Sciver.
The worst way to get out! Hayley Jensen is savvy enough to get a hand down to a Beaumont straight drive and it deflects onto the non-strikers’ stumps with Taylor backing up and therefore well out of her crease. Not fun at all.
6th over: England 42-2 (Beaumont 23, Sciver 0) Earlier in the over, Beaumont swung across the line with a slog-sweep that bounced once before crossing the rope for her fifth boundary. The end of a power play that would have been a lot better had they not lost Taylor at the very end of it.
5th over: England 37-1 (Beaumont 19, Taylor 0) Beaumont done for a lack of spin when trying to pull, a swing and a miss lucky that she is lucky wasn’t a tad straighter. The ball that got Wyatt seemed to keep its line rather than turn as well. There is a big shout for lbw to finish with Beaumont is reverse sweeping but she’s outside the line so it is turned down. Only one run in the over, alongside the wicket.
Wyatt dances to the spin of Kasperek in an effort to again make some room for herself to swing but she doesn’t get much of it, carrying nicely to the captain Bates at mid-off.
4th over: England 36-0 (Wyatt 15, Beaumont 18) The quickest of the New Zealand bowlers, Lea Tahuhu, on for her first over. It doesn’t start well, with Wyatt twice hitting her through the legside. The second of those is real help yourself stuff, a full toss on her pads that she helps down to the boundary. Beaumont pulls to midwicket to keep the strike, a shot that probably would have been four if not for Kerr’s diving stop.
3rd over: England 28-0 (Wyatt 8, Beaumont 17) Kasperek sends down the second over of spin in the power play. An experienced campaigner, she’s on the spot straight away. So Wyatt innovates, making room for herself before slaying through extra cover for her first boundary of the day. Beaumont misses a reverse sweep to finish.
2nd over: England 21-0 (Wyatt 2, Beaumont 16) Sophie Devine has the new ball from the Ian Botham Stand End. Sprays a wide first up before finding Beaumont’s inside edge. Devine now opening the bowling as well as the batting in this side, the vice-captain really taking ownership. It is Beaumont taking control though, cutting crisply behind point. Fantastic placement from the opener who is having a summer to match that of her breakthrough 2016 season. Devine does beat the bat with a delivery that hits the seam and flies. In turn, she attempts a bouncer next up but it has gone too high so a wide is called, the third of the now-lengthy over. Sure enough, Beaumont punishes the extra delivery, clipping with authority behind square leg for a one-bounce four. Class.
1st over: England 9-0 (Wyatt 1, Beaumont 8) Petersen spot on with her finger spin so Beaumont innovates and busts out a reverse sweep fifth ball of the game! “Silthy smooth” says Mel Jones on TV and that’s precisely what it is. Plays that shot as well as anyone in the game. Makes it back to back boundaries with a powerful pull. Once again, she’s away!
NOT OUT! Close call! Behind square came the throw from Tahuhu, she was sent back and nearly had to return all the way to the Andy Caddick Pavilion. Home by about two inches in the old money.
IS WYATT RUN OUT FIRST BALL? We’ll find out. They are going upstairs.
The players are on the field! Tammy Beaumont and Danni Wyatt opening the innings for the hosts. Anna Peterson to bowl the first over with her spin. PLAY!
We had a chat to Tammy Beaumontbetween the games. She believes par on this track, which has now had 120 overs of cricket played on it, will be about 165-170. It has really slowed down a lot compared to Wednesday, when it was hard as a cat’s head.
Amelia Kerr. Can’t wait to watch the 17-year-old sensational against England for the first time since last year’s World Cup. You may have heard of her last week when she clobbered a world record 232 not out then took 5/17 in the same game. She first came to prominence as a 14-year-old playing in a televised domestic final turning her leg breaks square. Due to how well the top order played against South Africa on Wednesday, she didn’t get a bat. Excellent interview with her here from during the week.
More broadly on the New Zealanders, they are consumed with securing success on the big stage after falling badly short at the World Cup and collapsing in the semi-final of the 2016 World T20. They boast a very experienced line up with players who feature prominently in both the Women’s Big Bash and the Kia Super League. If they are going to do something big, it has to be this year.
Teams in full:
New Zealand: Suzie Bates (c), Sophie Devine, Katey Martin (+), Amy Satterthwaite, Amelia Kerr, Maddy Green, Anna Peterson, Leigh Kasperek, Hayley Jensen, Lea Tahuhu, Bernadine Bezuidenhout.
One change to the side that played earlier this afternoon, left-arm seamer Tash Farrant coming in for all-rounder Jenny Gunn. I’ll have New Zealand’s side shortly.
Can England square the ledger on the day or will New Zealand continue their wonderful, unbeaten run so far on this tour of England and Ireland? That’s all all ahead of us in the second match of our Taunton double-header.
If you’re just tuning in, Heather Knight’s side were defeated by South Africa in the earlier game, accounted for my six wickets with three balls to spare after a couple of super knocks from Sune Luus and Lizelle Lee.
Adam will be here shortly.
Continue reading...