5 hours ago
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3rd over: New Zealand 9-3 (Devine 1, Halliday 2) Bell wipes her forehead on her shirt and races in. Fast and on the money.
And a first email drops gently into my inbox, hello David Harris!
”Baking doesn’t quite describe it in Canterbury. Sadly I couldn’t get a ticket today (but hurrah that the women’s games are selling out), but, from a mile or so from the ground, sweltering, tropical, oven-like might be more applicable.
“Good to see Issy Wong back in the side, fingers crossed for her.
“The commentary team are talking a lot about the slope (hospital side to Dover Road), and it is significant, but with this weather, at least there’s no danger of the drainage issues I’ve mailed you photos of previously. (ah yes, thank you, ed)
“And there’s Lauren’s first :o) Stuey himself would be proud of that one.”
2nd over: New Zealand 6-3 (Devine 1, Halliday 1) Amazing start for England, a dismal one for New Zealand. And a stunned silence at Canterbury.
WICKET! Kerr lbw Smith 0 (New Zealand 5-3)
Kerr reviews, grudgingly and without much confidence, after she drops to her knees to sweep Smith and is thwonked on the back pad. And the off-field umpire agrees with on-field Sue Redfern, and off she must trudge.
WICKET! Plimmer c and b Smith 0 (New Zealand 4-2)
Yikes, Plimmer won’t want to watch that replay, gets a warm-up dolly from Smith’s first ball and hits it straight back to her. Two in two for England.
WICKET! Gaze b Bell 4 (New Zealand 4-1)
Gaze has a hasty heave and loses her middle stump to a cracking ball that nudges in.
1st over: New Zealand 4-1 (Plimmer 0) Bell, blond hair in an immaculate bun, hoop earrings in each ear, starts with a perky away swinger. Four dots to start then Gaze pulls a short ball whippily to the rope. But that’s her lot.
Here come the players, Lauren Bell has the ball. We’re on!
It really does look baking in Canterbury – have big parasol envy looking at a gorgeous yellow one in the crowd. A little boy shades himself under his T-shirt and everyone is in sunglasses.
I’ve just tweaked the email address at the top of the page, if you did write in the last half hour I won’t have got it, apologies, so do try again.
“The ground announcer has just declared over the PA system: “I am very sweaty,” says Raf. Quite thankful right now to be on my sofa in the shade.
New Zealand XI
Two changes for New Zealand – Susie Bates is replaced by Nensi Patel and Lea Tahuh is in for Rosemary Mair.
New Zealand: Georgia Plimmer, Isabella Gaze (wk), Melie Kerr (c), Sophie Devine, Brooke Halliday, Maddy Green, Izzy Sharp, Jess Kerr, Nensi Patel, Lea Tahuhu, Bree Illing
England XI
England omit Sophie Ecclestone (right quad, precautionary) and replace her with Izzy Wong.
England XI: Sophia Dunkley, Alice Capsey, Maia Bouchier, Heather Knight, Freya Kemp, Danielle Gibson, Amy Jones (wk), Charlie Dean (c), Issy Wong, Linsey Smith, Lauren Bell.
New Zealand win the toss and will bat
Charlie Dean flicks the coin and Melie Kerr calls correctly.
More on Ecclestone, in Raf’s report from the last game.
“The oddest thing of all, though, was that Ecclestone, the world No 2, finished up by far the most expensive of the six bowlers. It feels sacrilegious, but if Edwards is really serious about getting Corteen-Coleman into her XI, it may be that she has to do the unthinkable and omit Ecclestone.”
Team news shortly.
Raf Nicholson is in situ at a full to the rafters Canterbury, where she reports that it is sweltering and they’re doing a roaring trade in iced coffee.
She’s also been talking to Kent’s resident women’s cricket historian, Rosemary Piddock, “who tells me that the first women’s match at this ground was 1959.”
Preamble
Hello! The circus moves to Canterbury today where England and New Zealand meet for their second T20 and fifth warm-up before the Big Top opens on June 12. The record so far? England win; NZ win; washout; England win.
Switch on the television to catch the postmortem at the last match – Ian Ward and Simon Doull saying Sophie Ecclestone is no longer a shoo-in for an England place with Linsey Smith undroppable and Tilly Corteen-Coleman coming up on the inside. Fascinating stuff ahead of the World Cup.
Play starts at 2.30 and we’ll have team news and toss news, shortly. Do join us.
