England recovered from the precarious position of 77 for 6 to post 149 for 7, enough to overcome New Zealand by 15 runs at Nelson.
Heather Knight posted a second consecutive half-century, and shared crucial partnerships of 45 off 30 with Charlie Dean, and 27 off 12 with Sarah Glenn. England’s most productive game-phase was the last 4 overs, by far:
Linsey Smith, selected in place of Lauren Filer, then proceeded to take a wicket with her first ball in international cricket in almost 5 years – Suzie Bates top-edging an attempted slog sweep to short fine leg – as New Zealand hared off after the target a bit more aggressively than they actually needed to, and ended up tripping over their own shoelaces.
This has been a very important start to the tour by Knight, who (including her 52 v India in December) has now hit three fifties in as many T20 innings. Believe it or not, prior to that she hadn’t hit a T20 half-century since BC (Before Covid) – February 2020 to be precise – and there were starting to be rumbles, including here at CRICKETher Towers, about whether she should actually still be part of England’s T20 team at all, let alone skippering it. Whatever happens in the next 6 months, she’s now put that question to bed, at least until after the World Cup.
It’s interesting, as well, that Knight has bowled in both these opening matches. England have used her very sparingly with the ball of late, partly due to injury – the last time she sent down overs in back-to-back T20s was actually also in February 2020 – but could it be that they see her as an extra bowling option on those spin-friendly pitches in Bangladesh later this year?
England’s innings showed the value of a long batting line-up: Dean still seems absolutely wasted at No.8, while Glenn – lest we forget – was once touted as a possible T20 opener for England. (Not that they actually need another one of those at the moment!) But England should also count themselves lucky, because a side with even slightly more batting depth than New Zealand would surely have made them pay for some sloppy decisions by the top order.
Syd’s blood pressure gradually RAMPED up (gettit?) as Maia Bouchier, Dean and finally Melie Kerr all perished to a particular shot (ahem).
Melie Kerr’s was perhaps the least forgivable of all – New Zealand needed 50 off 33 balls at the point at which she got out, which was perfectly feasible, and didn’t call for a gung-ho approach.
A continent away, Australia have recently pulled a rabbit out of a hat in their first ODI against Bangladesh – posting 213 after being 112 for 6 – proving that the best teams never say die. New Zealand, by contrast, seem quite happy to wave a white flag at the earliest opportunity. With Kerr back in the dugout, the hosts proceeded to lose a further 4 wickets for 8 runs and the game was done and dusted.
Syd’s Matterhorn tells the story – look at how New Zealand’s line dips under England’s, pretty much straightaway after Kerr’s wicket in the 15th over:
Realistically, New Zealand probably have one more crack at winning a match this series, before England’s four best players return to the XI after their WPL-enforced absence. It doesn’t feel massively likely, does it?
CRICKETher 
“New Zealand, by contrast, seem quite happy to wave a white flag at the earliest opportunity”
Are they surrendering? Or is that actually the best they can fight?
Let’s face facts – England are excellent. They are also playing only the 5th or 6th best team in the world.
The White Ferns are in deep trouble. They have been declining since the team was selected for the 2017 World Cup. Their selection decisions are basically wishful thinking, trying to find another prodigy like the 16 year old Melie Kerr while ignoring experience and domestic performance.
There are better mid-order batters, better wicket-keepers, better spin bowlers and better fielders left in the NZA side or left out completely. Eden Carson has taken the 2nd most wickets for NZ over the last 2 years, but doesn’t even play on her home ground. Kept out by *Fran Jonas*.
I don’t know why Bates and Devine stick with it. Must be demoralising for them.
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Great to see Knight back in form but her match-winning performances feel a bit double-edged, highlighting England’s reliance on a small group of veteran batters. Generally speaking, if you weren’t involved in the 2017 World Cup squad, you’re not scoring many runs for this England team.
I was curious, so I looked back over the Jon Lewis era. Since his first game in charge in the West Indies in late 2022, the numbers look like this:
50+ scores:
Nat Sciver-Brunt (10)
Knight and Wyatt (6 each)
Beaumont, Dunkley and Capsey (2 each)
Jones and Bouchier (1 each)
30-49 scores:
Jones (6)
Wyatt and Dunkley (5 each)
Sciver-Brunt, Knight and Beaumont (3 each)
Capsey (2)
Bouchier and Dean (1 each)
To some extent this is unremarkable. Batters peak later in their careers. Australia still get most of their runs from Perry, Mooney, Healy and, until recently, Lanning. But they also have Litchfield, Sutherland, Gardner and McGrath – all of whom should still be going strong at the 2029 World Cup.
Series against NZ, Pakistan and NZ again should be a perfect opportunity for 1 or 2 of the younger English batters to really establish themselves this year. Fingers crossed.
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