Cricket: Suzie Bates' 100 anchors Ferns win

Captain Suzie Bates cracked 14 boundaries in her 106 scored off just 113 balls in her sixth ODI century. Picture / Alan Gibson

Captain’s century key to England’s 67-run defeat

A top-class century from captain Suzie Bates was the key factor as the White Ferns defeated England by 67 runs at Mt Maunganui's Bay Oval yesterday.

The game was the first of the three-match ODI series at the venue this week in round two of the International Women's Championship to qualify for the ICC Women's World Cup in 2017.

The White Ferns batted first after England won the toss and made 240-8 in their 50 overs.

Openers Bates and Rachel Priest got the innings off to a rollicking start putting on 157, with Bates cracking 14 boundaries in her 106 scored off just 113 balls to reach her sixth ODI century.

Priest was also in good touch but the innings changed dramatically in the 30th over when England captain Charlotte Edwards threw the ball to her sixth bowler, Heather Knight. She quickly removed Priest for 52 and bagged three more cheap dismissals as the White Ferns slumped to 182-6.

Knight ended with 4-47 off 10 overs but Katie Perkins (27no) cleverly worked the tail through the final overs to get the total up to 240.

The White Ferns soon had England's innings in trouble and they never recovered.

Knight opened the batting with Edwards and was run out by a good piece of fielding by Kate Broadmore. Opening bowler Lea Tahuhu then removed Lauren Winfield before Sarah McGlashan ran out Edwards to have England teetering at 51-3.

The pressure intensified on batsmen Sarah Taylor and Lydia Greenway with the accurate White Ferns bowlers Morna Neilson and Erin Bermingham strangling the run rate as England reached 79-3 after 25 overs.

Tauranga-born Neilson captured the key wicket of Taylor an over later then Bermingham made the crucial breakthrough, bowling Greenway for a stubborn 27 to have England reeling at 93-5 with 20 overs left. Bermingham kept bowling full and straight and hit the stumps again an over later, sending England's innings crumbling to 125-8.

Anya Shrubsole top scored with an entertaining 29 in a 10th wicket partnership of 47 with Danielle Hazell, but it was too little too late as England were bowled out for 173 in the 45th over.

Canterbury's Bermingham finished with the best figures of 2-20 off 10 overs.

The two teams meet again at Bay Oval tomorrow and on Sunday with both games starting at 10.30am.

Entry to the games is free.

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