Overview of the 2024 England Women’s tour of New Zealand

Heather Knight’s aggressive fifty was key to England’s 1-0 lead in the T20I series against New Zealand. Despite an early dismissal of Tammy Beaumont for 15, Sophia Dunkley’s aggressive batting, marked by six boundaries, laid a strong foundation for England. Nonetheless, Dunkley was dismissed for 32 in the eighth over, necessitating England to regroup. Knight then partnered with Maia Bouchier to resurrect the innings, adding 91 runs for the third wicket. Although Bouchier couldn’t accelerate as desired, Knight played fluently, scoring 63 runs before being dismissed in the penultimate over. England concluded with a formidable total of 160 runs.

New Zealand suffered an early setback in their innings when 19-year-old Isabella Gaze was dismissed for a duck in the first over. Georgia Plimmer and Suzie Bates built a partnership of 60 runs for the second wicket, but their slow scoring rate increased the required run rate. Maddy Green’s 8 runs off 14 balls added to their challenges, putting pressure on Bates to guide the team towards the target. Despite Bates scoring a half-century, New Zealand struggled to keep up with the required rate, needing 71 runs from the final five overs. Ultimately, they fell short by 27 runs.

Match Summary: England Women posted 160/4 in 20 overs, with Heather Knight scoring 63 and Maia Bouchier contributing an unbeaten 43. In response, New Zealand Women managed 133/5 in their 20 overs, with Suzie Bates top-scoring with 65. However, England’s bowlers, led by Lauren Bell with figures of 2/29, secured a 27-run victory.