Cricket: Auckland women on the rise

Auckland join Central Districts at the top of the women's Twenty20 cricket table thanks to a rain-disrupted fifth-round win over Northern Districts in Auckland today.

The Aucklanders got the best of the conditions, and a quickfire 43-run opening partnership between Victoria Lind and Michelle Lynch laid the base for a useful 136 for six off the full 20 overs.

For Northern Districts, 19-year-old medium pacer Morna Nielsen picked up a career-best Twenty20 bag of 3-30.

But Northern's chase was plagued by ever-encroaching rain, and only openers Kate Pulford and Natalie Dodd managed to put together a partnership of any substance. Pulford hit out with 30 off 23 balls while Dod's 28 off 22 included two fours and a six.

When play was finally abandoned halfway into the 13th over, Northern were 82 for five, deemed three runs short under the Duckworth-Lewis system.

The other Twenty20 match played today was also rain-shortened, reduced to 14 overs at University Oval in Dunedin as Otago took on Canterbury.

Otago's modest 81 for seven proved too taxing for Canterbury, who crumbled to 70 for six in their 14 overs.

- NZPA