Nat Sciver scored her second century of the ICC Women’s World Cup as England beat New Zealand by 75 runs to book their place in the tournament’s final four.
England opted to bat first – after a cap presentation for Katherine Brunt, today celebrating her 100th ODI – and soon fell to 52-3 before Sciver (129) combined with Surrey Stars teammate Tammy Beaumont (93) to put on 170 for the fourth wicket and take England to 284-9 from their 50 overs.
England beat New Zealand at Derby to clinch a place in the ICC World Cup semi-finals and their opponents must now beat India on Saturday to stay in the tournament.
In the end, an efficient performance saw England complete a convincing win over the White Ferns at Derby, but the game had started in anxious fashion for the hosts. Heather Knight won the toss and chose to bat, and with England’s top order always keen to impose themselves, Suzie Bates gave the second over to flighty off-spinner Leigh Kasperek.
It was a tactic that would bear lucrative fruit, but not before Lauren Winfield had guided a Lea Tahuhu delivery to a diving Amy Satterthwaite at gully. Winfield’s frustration showed on her face, not for the first time in this tournament, and her return from injury has been a story of positive, good-looking cameos; she looks like she’s champing at the bit to go on to a bigger score.
Sarah Taylor has been batting with supreme confidence, sparked by her unbeaten 73 against Sri Lanka at Taunton and cemented with a magnificent century against South Africa at Bristol, but she became the victim of Suzie Bates’ spin-trap as she advanced down the wicket to a flighted Leigh Kasperek ball, only to hit it straight back to the bowler, who took a low, diving catch. Kasperek then had Heather Knight lbw to leave England 53 for three with Derby’s party atmosphere in tatters.
But, no stresses for Tammy Beaumont and Nat Sciver; the former has been limpet-like in these past three games, giving England’s middle order purchase from which to escape rocky situations. Sciver, conversely, has failed to fully take advantage of a couple of starts, and spoke of her disappointment in doing so against Australia, but played with poise and consideration here.
The fourth wicket partnership added 170 runs in 27.1 overs, barely a bad ball went unpunished along the way and the running between the wickets was notably impressive. Many of the players have been pleased to see their fitness work reap clear results on the pitch, not least Beaumont and Sciver, both of whom have praised the work of the coaches, and been pleased to feel the benefits of their own efforts in training.
Another unexpected benefit of practice was Nat Sciver’s audacious, between-the-legs, ‘Natmeg’ shot that she played shortly before completing her second century of this World Cup. It was the talk of the terraces, and social, media, and Sciver was slightly embarrassed explaining it to the assembled press after the game. “Because my stance is quite wide, I get into a position where I can’t move my front foot again. It just happens by chance, really.”
Tammy Beaumont was unlucky not to make a century of her own, caught at long on in an attempt to push up the run-rate towards the end of the innings – though it was typical of her attitude to the team that she should miss out on a personal milestone trying to make the right choice for the team. England rather stuttered home after the big two had been removed, though the final total of 284 for nine looked a tall order on a drying pitch.
Indeed, that was how it turned out as New Zealand lost Rachel Priest in the second over. Priest had come out with all guns blazing but, having hit three of her first four balls to the boundary, got a short-of-a-length ball from Anya Shrubsole that kept low and made her pull shot look a little unwise by uprooting middle and off.
Suzie Bates joined Amy Satterthwaite at the crease and they formed a dangerous-looking partnership of 75 from 106 balls, one that looked to be getting going when Alex Hartley and Sarah Taylor produced the crucial intervention of the innings. Bowling a similar delivery to the one that did for Australian captain Meg Lanning, Hartley beat the bat. But, instead of bowling Bates, as she had Lanning, the ball just missed the stumps and Sarah Taylor’s quicksilver keeping was required. Taylor’s glovework gave Bates no chance of getting back to her crease and England had the crucial breakthrough.
Amy Satterthwaite was caught and bowled by Marsh, returning to the side after missing the Australia game, and the White Ferns’ last major hope of a big score came with big-hitting number five Sophie Devine. Unfortunately for them, she had suffered a side-strain in the field and looked to be lacking her full range of movement, not to mention some of her usual power. She hit Alex Hartley (fairly) high in the air to a wide mid-off, and Anya Shrubsole took a tumbling catch.
After the loss of Devine, England’s score was never threatened again, and wickets were shared around, with Shrubsole adding a second, Hartley a third, a straight-forward run-out, and Heather Knight’s excellent dismissal, bowling Katey Martin with her second ball of the game.
England are now top of the group, level on points and wins with Australia, but a good margin better on net run-rate. That means they will almost certainly stay top if they can beat the West Indies on Saturday, and that would mean facing the fourth placed side at Bristol, most likely to be the winner of the aforementioned make-or-break match between India, the only team to beat them so far, and New Zealand.
Report courtesy of the ECB
