Third women’s T20 international, Canterbury
New Zealand 141-8 (20 overs): Devine 58* (42); Ecclestone 4-25
England 142-4 (19.2 overs): Capsey 67* (60); Jonas 2-23
England won by six wickets and lead five-match series 3-0
Alice Capsey hit an unbeaten 67 as England clinched a tense six-wicket win over New Zealand in the third T20 international to take an unassailable 3-0 lead in the five-match series.
Sophie Ecclestone’s masterful 4-25 helped restrict the Kiwis to 141-8 while Lauren Filer (2-17) and Sarah Glenn (1-14) also bowled eye-catching spells.
New Zealand were indebted to skipper Sophie Devine who accelerated in the final few overs to finish unbeaten on 58 off 42 balls after opener Suzie Bates had made 38.
England lost in-form Maia Bouchier for a first-ball duck but Capsey and Sophia Dunkley (35) enjoyed a 66-run stand for the second wicket.
Nat Sciver-Brunt, skippering the side after Heather Knight was rested, also departed without scoring but 19-year-old Capsey batted with maturity to see England home.
With 28 runs required off 17 balls for victory Capsey whacked Amelia Kerr down the ground for a towering six to signal England’s charge.
Freya Kemp bludgeoned 16 off eight balls before Capsey hit the winning runs – albeit via a streaky shot and misfield – with four balls to spare.
The fourth game takes place at Kia Oval on Saturday from 18:30 BST.
The margin of victory in the previous three one-day internationals and two T20s between the two sides had been so emphatic that England are heading into experimentation territory.
In this contest that stretched to Knight sitting out and giving Sciver-Brunt a whirl at skippering the side under the guise of ‘what if..?’ contingency planning for the T20 World Cup, which takes place in Bangladesh in October.
Should Knight come a cropper in the tournament in Bangladesh the experienced Sciver-Brunt would be a more than capable stand-in – although that was probably already obvious before this match.
England also gave opener Danni Wyatt the night off which afforded the talented Dunkley an opportunity at the top as she played her first T20 international since March and her breezy innings gave the hosts a positive start.
It was Capsey’s innings that will have pleased England the most, though.
The teenager is known for her attacking strokeplay but on occasions her aggressive intent can get the better of her.
So the manner in which she batted in Canterbury to get England within striking distance of the total before upping the ante shows a growing maturity to go with her fearless talent.
“I love batting number three it is the best place to bat in T20,” Capsey told Sky Sports.
“I feel like I have a good understanding of my game. I just want to perform for England so I’m happy to get a performance in today.”
It was Capsey’s top score in T20s for England – eclipsing knocks of 51 against Sri Lanka and Ireland in 2023.
That it came at a much slower strike-rate – 111.66 – compared to her other three T20 half-centuries does not matter a jot in the bigger picture.
England captain Nat Sciver-Brunt: “With a bowling attack we have got and the people on the sidelines waiting to come in it is a pretty easy job to chuck the ball to different people, so I’m happy I could keep the winning streak going.
“The last few overs were pretty nervy but the calmness they showed was pretty special.
“We don’t want to do it all the time but putting ourselves under pressure like that and then come out the other side, if we can take to [the World Cup in] Bangladesh, that would be perfect.”
New Zealand skipper Sophie Devine: “We asked the group to be more competitive, have fight and ticker and we had that. I am really proud of the group – it has been a tough tour so far and to take them so close today was encouraging.
“Our batters showed intent and were clear on how they wanted to score. To see those learnings is something we’ve asked for and we’re starting to see with this group. I’ve still got a huge amount of belief in this group but we’re working towards the pinnacle event at the end of the year.”
