England trundled to victory in the 3rd T20 v New Zealand at Hove; but did little to dispel the notion that they can stroll to the easy wins but look likely to struggle when faced with the big totals in the big games.
Having bowled New Zealand out for 80, there was never any danger of England losing this match, but where other teams might have looked to make a statement by winning at 70mph, England were quite happy to to stick to the 20mph speed limit in force in Brighton these days. It certainly wasn’t inspiring or entertaining in the Jon Lewis sense; but as Charlotte Edwards said when she took on the England coaching role: “You know what’s entertaining? Winning!” England took that to its logical conclusion today, and so you’d imagine they’ll be pretty happy with the outcome.
Today was the hottest May day on record in the south of England, and Hove was no exception. The odd waft of a breeze coming in from the sea provided little relief from an oppressive sun that beat down on players and spectators alike. This match was a sellout in terms of tickets, but there were hundreds of empty seats in the stands, as families opted to stay home; and honestly, I don’t blame them – the press were seated outside; but I wasn’t the only one relieved to have the option to retreat indoors, which I took after just a few overs.
New Zealand opted to bat, thinking it would be a decent deck, and coach Ben Sawyer said afterwards that he stood by that assessment, recognising that it was poor shots rather than a poor pitch which led to their capitulation. Dani Gibson was named Player of the Match after taking 3-14; but all she did was pop the ball up there on a length and wait for New Zealand’s batters to make a mistake, as Melie Kerr, Sophie Devine and Maddy Green gave up straightforward catches.
Given that those three – Kerr, Devine and Green – basically are New Zealand’s batting order at the moment, getting all 3 cheaply was crucial; but it doesn’t suddenly make Gibson anything more than a fill-in with the ball, and I still think the big sides will be licking their lips at the thought of getting to face 4 overs of her during the World Cup.
Linsey Smith was exceptional again opening the bowling, taking the first over in the absence of the rested Lauren Bell; and Sophie Ecclestone put in a decent shift too, which she honestly needed to with Tilly Corteen-Coleman hot on her heels. That means TCC hasn’t had a look-in in this T20 series, though of course she did make her ODI debut in the previous rubber. Given that she is in the World Cup squad, England will surely want to get her T20 debut out of the way before then, so I’ll be surprised if we don’t see her next week against India, which could be a baptism of fire, depending on the age-old question of which India turn up for what is essentially an extended warm-up for the main event!
About England’s batting there is really very little to say. I could snark at Dunks for the third time this week, for trying to smash it out of the ground and falling about 50 yards short; at Bouch for almost running Heather out… again; or at Heather herself for a lapse in concentration that meant she was unable to finish a job she would once have been able to do in her sleep. But I suspect very much like Charlotte Edwards, we’ve learned little from this series about England’s batters that we didn’t know before. What we have learned might just have to be unlearned anyway, with Danni Wyatt-Hodge presumably coming back to open in the World Cup and NSB fitting in somewhere-or-other – I’d guess nicking Kemp’s spot, assuming that Dean remains fit enough to bowl 4 overs.
Yet again, I find myself wondering if we’ve missed an opportunity to get a young gun onto the pitch – Charis Pavely having sat on the bench for all 3 of these T20s. She’ll no doubt get her opportunity, perhaps against Ireland in September, though those are ODIs and I can’t help but feel this would have been a better opportunity for her… and England… to have learned something.
Concluding this piece, I feel intensely aware that I have very-much not “nailed the ending” – there is no grand conclusion, or sweeping rhetorical flush.
But then there wasn’t from England either.