Sophie Ecclestone’s five-fer followed by Maia Bouchier’s maiden ODI ton, powers England to an ODI series victory over New Zealand.
The England women’s team led by skipper Heather Knight sealed a thumping 9-wicket victory with 172 balls to spare to go 1-0 up in the ODI series. The 23-year-old spin bowling all-rounder Charlie Dean was awarded the Player of the Match for her match-winning spell (9-1-38-4) with the ball.
England skipper Heather Knight won the toss and opted to field first. After being inserted to bat first, New Zealand got off to a poor start as they lost both their openers Georgia Plimmer and Suzie Bates in the powerplay. Skipper Sophie Devine joined Amelia Kerr at the crease and the duo stitched a much-needed 46-run partnership for the 2nd wicket. Sophie Ecclestone picked up the big wicket of the opposition skipper Sophie Devine to provide the third breakthrough for England.
Maddy Green joined Amelia Kerr at the crease and the duo stitched another crucial 58-run partnership for the 4th wicket to take their side past the 100-run mark. Charlie Dean picked up the wicket of Maddy Green to provide the 4th breakthrough for her side. New Zealand suffered a collapse as they lost their last six wickets for just 27 runs, as a result, were eventually bundled out for 141 with 49 balls to spare.
Amelia Kerr (43 off 86 balls), Maddy Green (30 off 48 balls), and skipper Sophie Devine (28 off 34 balls), were the top performers with the bat for New Zealand. Sophie Ecclestone (9-3-25-5), Kate Cross (10-3-31-1), and Charlie Dean (10-2-35-2) were the top performers with the ball for England.
Chasing a target of 142, England openers Tammy Beaumont and Maia Bouchier got them off to a solid start with a 73-run opening partnership, scoring at over five runs an over. Tammy Beaumont was found short of her crease to provide the first breakthrough for New Zealand. Skipper Heather Knight joined Maia Bouchier at the crease and the duo took their side closer to the target with a 42-run partnership for the 2nd wicket. Brooke Halliday picked up the big wicket of the opposition skipper Heather Knight to provide the 2nd breakthrough for her side.
Nat Sciver-Brunt joined Maia Bouchier at the crease and the duo took their side over the line with eight wickets in hand and 153 balls to spare to seal the three-match ODI series. Maia Bouchier (100 off 88 balls), and Tammy Beaumont (28 off 31 balls) were the top performers with the bat for England. Brooke Halliday (2-0-11-1), Molly Penfold (5-0-20-0), and Amelia Kerr (7-0-37-0) were the top performers with the ball for New Zealand.
Maia Bouchier was awarded the Player of the Match for her match-winning performance (100 off 88 balls) with the bat, smashing her maiden ODI century, playing a crucial role in helping her side seal the ODI series against New Zealand.