England v New Zealand: Heather Knight stars as hosts win ODI opener in Bristol

By Amy LofthouseBBC Sport at County Ground, Bristol
England v New Zealand one-day international series, Bristol
England 241 (49.3 overs): Knight 89; Kerr 3-42
New Zealand 211 (46.3 overs): Satterthwaite 79*; Sciver 2-10
England won by 30 runs; lead series 1-0
Scorecard

England overcame a stuttering batting performance to beat New Zealand by 30 runs in a close first one-day international in Bristol.

The hosts looked on the verge of victory with New Zealand reduced to 177-9, chasing 242 to win.

However, Amy Satterthwaite's superb, unbeaten 79 took the game deep, and her 34-run stand with Leigh Kasperek for the last wicket kept New Zealand's hopes alive.

It took a stunning direct hit from Lauren Winfield-Hill to run out Kasperek and dismiss New Zealand for 211 with 21 balls to spare, giving England a 1-0 lead in the five-match series.

Earlier, England captain Heather Knight made a sublime 89 but the hosts twice collapsed after being asked to bat first.

They fell from 109-1 to 140-5 and then subsided from 228-5 to 241 all out, with three balls remaining.

Off-spinner Charlie Dean became the first England player to have been born in the 2000s when she was presented with her cap by former captain Charlotte Edwards before play.

Both sets of bowlers were crucial but this match ultimately came down to two batting performances, with Knight just edging out Satterthwaite.

The second ODI takes place at Worcester on Sunday.

Satterthwaite takes New Zealand close

The tone for New Zealand's innings was set inside the first seven overs, with Katherine Brunt bowling four maidens and the White Ferns scoring just nine runs.

It was not as though New Zealand needed to hit boundary after boundary; simply rotating the strike would have shown more positive energy, rather than allowing England to bowl at them.

Suzie Bates was the first to succumb to the pressure, sending a thick outside edge off Nat Sciver to Knight at second slip, before the struggling Lauren Down edged the same bowler behind.

It would have taken the experience and collective calmness of Satterthwaite and Sophie Devine to guide the tourists over the line and for a time it looked as though they would.

Satterthwaite was the more aggressive in the 78-run stand and Devine's dismissal, lofting the excellent Kate Cross to mid-on, did not stop Satterthwaite as she moved to a half-century.

Strong on the sweep, she was able to pick the gaps in a way the other players could not, twice crashing Dean through the covers to pick up boundaries.

Her partnership with Tahuhu, who smacked 25 off 14 balls, and last batter Kasperek took New Zealand closer than they might have imagined.

But England's discipline with the ball - and New Zealand's earlier collapse from 109-3 to 143-8 - ultimately won out.

Knight stands firm amid England collapses

England's total flattered them - they lost 4-31 and then 5-13 in their two collapses against a disciplined New Zealand.

Only Knight was able to withstand, making her 23rd ODI score of 50 or more, and sharing a crucial 88-run stand with Brunt.

With Brunt providing most of the big hits, striking five fours in her 43 off 51 balls, Knight picked the gaps in the field and ran well to temporarily halt New Zealand's push.

England had a solid platform, with openers Tammy Beaumont and Winfield-Hill putting on 44 for the first wicket, before Winfield-Hill fell cheaply, caught down the leg side.

Beaumont's dismissal sparked the first collapse. After she fell lbw to Devine on review, Tahuhu forced Sciver to inside edge on to her stumps before Amy Jones tried to pull a quicker ball and was bowled.

It was a strong return to action for Tahuhu, who had three surgeries on a pre-cancerous mole on her left foot, after previously struggling with hamstring and shoulder problems.

England looked settled with Knight and Brunt at the crease and it was clear that this was a pitch that, once a batter played themselves in, runs could come quickly.

But Knight's dismissal, caught and bowled by Kasperek in the 47th over, seemed to shake England.

Brunt was bowled by Kerr, Cross holed out to cover and Dean was outdone by a Kerr slower ball.

The final wicket summed up England's lopsided batting performance, with Sophie Ecclestone left stranded in the middle of the pitch as she was run out with ease at the non-striker's end.

'It was tough out there' - reaction

England World Cup winner Alex Hartley on Test Match Special: "New Zealand will be disappointed with how they've gone in this run chase. They were there or thereabouts with the run-rate the whole innings but losing wickets let them down."

New Zealand captain Sophie Devine to Sky Sports: "We got very close there in the end, it just goes to show the deeper we take the game, the closer we can get. I'm really proud of that effort but we've got a lot to improve on going forward.

"There are plenty of positives to take. What's pleasing about this group is we show a lot of resilience."

England captain and player of the match Heather Knight: "We talked as a group about how to approach batting on slower wickets and how to get 250 on them.

"We fell a bit short but it was tough out there. It wasn't my most fluent innings but having set batters was the key and Katherine Brunt was brilliant sticking with me."

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