Black Ferns beat England

The New Zealand women’s cricket team have beaten England by seven wickets and finishing the game with 11 overs to spare.

This was the last of three one-day international (ODI) matches between the two teams.

The star of the day was Sophie Devine, New Zealand’s captain, who made a grand return after missing a previous game due to a thigh injury. Devine shone brightly, scoring an impressive century with 100 runs from just 96 balls. Her powerful playing included hitting the ball past the boundary for four runs 11 times and over it for six runs on four occasions. This was her eighth time reaching a century in ODI cricket.

A memorable moment came in the 39th over when Devine hit two sixes, with the second one securing New Zealand’s victory over England’s score of 194 runs, which was not as high as expected.

Supporting Devine was Maddy Green, who also played excellently, scoring 38 runs without getting out. Together, Devine and Green added 105 runs to New Zealand’s score, ensuring their team’s win.

Even though England had already won the series before this match, New Zealand’s performance was significantly better than in previous games. The New Zealand bowlers were particularly effective, with Jess Kerr and Hannah Rowe each taking three wickets. Amelia Kerr, using her leg-spin bowling, took two wickets and helped slow down England’s scoring.

England’s Amy Jones stood out with her batting, scoring 50 runs from 52 balls. However, New Zealand faced a challenging start, losing two early wickets for just 14 runs. But Amelia Kerr, scoring 31 runs, and Devine then steadied their team’s innings before Green joined Devine to lead New Zealand to a confident victory.