Key events
That’s all for today/tonight. Thank you for your company, I leave you with an account of England’s victory.
Heather Knight’s verdict
I was really happy with our start. We found that it was quite a seam-friendly wicket. Nat used her shaky ball really well – she doesn’t often throw three balls on the power play – and did a brilliant job.
It was really exciting to watch Lauren Filer bowl with the wind at her back. To be honest, I was a bit scared the first time I slipped! I knew if there were edges they would come pretty quickly. She is a real threat for the wicket, which is important in T20 cricket, and she is constantly evolving. She worked at a supermarket about a year ago so it’s great to see she’s doing so well.
If we’re being picky we’ll let them get a few too many, but I thought Izzy Gaze really struggled. We talked about the chase, especially after the third game, and it was good to be able to make the runs quite calmly. Nat was once again outstanding. It was a bit of an odd wicket with a sort of tennis ball bounce; It was pretty hard to start with, but I really liked the options we chose.
New Zealand captain Amelia Kerr speaks
Izzy (Gaze) was outstanding. She works damn hard, so it was nice to see her get away with it today.
England are a quality team. We were in a winning position at times in various games, but didn’t quite get over the finish line. Today I found our character, our fight and our energy outstanding. We did well to go as deep as we did. It probably doesn’t help if your spinner doesn’t throw balls with his front foot!
It’s a real honor to be captain of the White Ferns, I absolutely love this team. It’s easy to guide them. It’s even more special to do this here in the Basin. It means a lot to me.
The player of the series is the brilliant Maia Bouchier (223 runs at 56 with a strike rate of 130).
The series couldn’t have gone much better. I wanted to contribute a little more today but we are really happy with the win. There was a bit of pressure at the start of the series, but having a chance at the top of the leaderboard was really exciting. I’m really happy that I was able to do well at this level. I want to do that consistently now.
All winter I worked on the mental side of the game and tried to avoid distractions as much as possible. I always try to enjoy the game again. I always think: Can I try to hit really good cricket shots and not force anything? The last few games I’ve always had a smile on my face and that’s all I want to do.
The player of the match is Nat Sciver-Brunt (31 from 27 balls, 4-0-24-2)
It’s great to climb a seam gate and explore. It’s nice to adapt to different conditions and change the game when necessary.
It would have been nicer if me and Heather had been there at the end, but our partnership made things stronger.
England wins the T20I series 4-1
It was a bit of a sloppy fightback and England looked a little vulnerable against Amelia Kerr’s spin, but they managed to claim an impressive 4-1 win.
This time Maia Bouchier was the only one in the top five not contribute. But she was the star of the series and is in pole position to open the World Championship alongside Danni Wyatt.
England win by five wickets with seven balls to spare!
18.5 overs: England 138-5 (Jones 6, Dunkley 6) Sophia Dunkley got the job done, hitting her second ball for four to seal a fine win for England.
WICKET! England 132-5 (Knight c J Kerr b Mair 35)
England stumbles towards the finish line. Knight batted tamely to cover to end a completed innings of 35; England need 5 from 9 balls.
18th over: England 128-4 (Knight 34, Jones 5) The pressure created by this wicket fades as Amelia Kerr bowls an ill-timed no-ball. Amy Jones punished them by sinking the free kick to make it four. Nine to win.
WICKET! England 121-4 (Sciver-Brunt v A. Kerr 31)
Well bowled, Amelia Kerr! She beat Nat Sciver-Brunt and finally landed a googly that stayed low and hit leg stump. New Zealand still has a slim chance of winning; England need 16 from 15.
Fifty partnership between Sciver-Brunt and Knight
17th over: England 120-3 (Sciver-Brunt 31, Knight 32) Knight hit Tahuhu for four to reach the fifty partnership from 38 balls. It was a masterclass in risk management. You can never fully control risk in a T20 runchase, but they minimized it by scoring at eight per over.
The result is this England need 17 from 18 balls.
16th over: England 113-3 (Sciver-Brunt 30, Knight 26) Knight pulls Jonas for four, with at least one single less than the other deliveries. Sciver-Brunt and Knight are experienced, stealthy finishers who have given England complete control.
15th over: England 103-3 (Sciver-Brunt 28, Knight 18) Knight manages to fend off the Kerrs in a row, opening up in the face to control Jess’s first throw beyond short third.
Four singles from the last five balls make it another good over for England. New Zealand must end this partnership
14th over: England 95-3 (Sciver-Brunt 26, Knight 12) Amelia Kerr gets herself back into the game and almost strikes as Knight misses a careful shot that goes to safety on the leg side. I think it stopped at the pitch.
A very good over is marred when Sciver-Brunt hits a ball over the keeper’s head on the last ball for a four. This limit keeps the required rate at seven per over or 42 off 36 balls.
13th over: England 87-3 (Sciver-Brunt 20, Knight 10) An outstanding over from Tahuhu, who bowled very directly to push Sciver-Brunt in particular into space. Only three more runs left, then England need 50 from 42 balls.
12th over: England 84-3 (Sciver-Brunt 18, Knight 9) Kerr misses a Opportunity to expire from her own bowling, turned and bowled past the non-striker’s side past the stumps, with Knight barely in the frame. This feels like a big moment because England are now in control of the run rate, so wickets are essential. Sciver-Brunt reinforces this point by scooping the next ball for four.
11th over: England 76-3 (Sciver-Brunt 12, Knight 7) A surprisingly relaxed over from Mair, with a boundary ball each for Knight and Sciver-Brunt. Despite the wicket of Wyatt, England scored 22 in the last two overs.
10th over: England 65-3 (Sciver-Brunt 7, Knight 1) Sciver-Brunt and Knight together in another chase. You need 72 of 60 balls.
WICKET! England 64-3 (Wyatt St Gaze v A Kerr 21)
Danni Wyatt is gone! She stormed towards Amelia Kerr, who saw her coming and pushed him a little further. Wyatt ran past it and Izzy Gaze completed a simple kick.
Up until then it had been a good finish for England, with successive deliveries to the boundary. The first beat Sciver-Brunt’s momentum and bounced past Gaze for four byes; The second was swept in the air past short fine leg.
9th over: England 54-2 (Wyatt 20, Sciver-Brunt 2) Wyatt has starved the batting a bit, having only faced 20 of the 54 balls so far. She’s still on track despite not hitting a boundary, sweeping three of Jonas’ last throw to turn a good result into a good result for England.
8th over: England 45-2 (Wyatt 14, Sciver-Brunt 0) This is building up well. England need 92 from 72 balls.
WICKET! England 45-2 (Capsey v Green v Kerr 25)
Four and out for Alice Capsey. After sweeping the ball very well for four, Amelia Kerr tried to launch a straight six into the wind and dragged the ball long distance to Maddy Green. Capsey played quite well, making 25 off 22 balls, although her strokeplay felt a bit forced at times.
7th over: England 38-1 (Wyatt 13, Capsey 19) The left-arm spinner Fran Jonas is at the start. Capsey takes the lead in this partnership; She cuts and pulls back-to-back deliveries for two to the low point. But overall it’s another pretty good over for New Zealand with five of them left. This game is in the balance.
6th over: England 33-1 (Wyatt 12, Capsey 15) Rosemary Mair, who set the tone for this bowling performance with an exemplary first over, returns to the attack. Mair’s line is again very tight, but her last ball goes just wide and Capsey steers it past backward point for four. Beautifully played.
5th over: England 27-1 (Wyatt 11, Capsey 10) Capsey hooks Tahuhu for four and then hits a loose throw very well for another boundary. She is such a dangerous player whose brash aggression can damage a bowler’s mind, line and length.
England need 110 from 90 balls.
4th over: England 18-1 (Wyatt 11, Capsey 1) Capsey survives a overwhelming opportunity! She charged at Kerr, missed the ball and was well outside her goal crease when the ball bounced out of Gaze’s gloves. It was a bit of an awkward thump – the ball was kicking a little and she probably didn’t see it until late – but she usually managed it.
3rd over: England 16-1 (Wyatt 10, Capsey 0) That was the last ball of the over.
WICKET! England 16-1 (Bouchier v Gaze v Tahuhu 6)
Wyatt hits new bowler Tahuhu back over her head for…two. It would have been four, but the ball stopped just inside the boundary. That was a bit strange.
New Zealand started well with the ball. Tahuhu bursts one from distance to hit Wyatt on the arm – and then she takes the big wicket! Bouchier tried to slide to third man but managed too well and Izzy Gaze caught him comfortably. A tame end to a wonderful series.
2nd over: England 9-0 (Bouchier 6, Wyatt 3) Jess Kerr’s first ball bounces flamboyantly past the face of a surprised Bouchier, who smiles at the pitch.
As Kerr drives the ball up, Bouchier hits the first boundary of the innings in style over middle. This is another very noticeable line. Wyatt gets her first runs with a mistimed ramp that goes past the keeper for three. I can’t type the word “ramp” without hearing Richie Aprile’s voice; I think some people are just lucky in life.
1st over: England 1-0 (Bouchier 1, Wyatt 0) An excellent first over from Mair cost just one run, but Bouchier missed the ball. Wyatt was hit outside off stump as she tried to cut her first delivery.
After a quick turnaround, here come the players. Rosemary Mair will open the bowling for Maia Bouchier.
