England have beaten the White Ferns by five wickets in a hard fought match at Bert Sutcliffe Oval in Lincoln.
Chasing 234 for victory, England made the winning runs with 10 balls to spare, but it was closer than the scoreboard might suggest.
The White Ferns were put into bat after losing the toss, but got off to a solid start, with newly promoted opener Katey Martin making 29. Her good work was continued by Amy Satterthwaite and Sara McGlashan. The pair put on 71 for the fourth wicket, before Satterthwaite was out for 38. A fiercely determined McGlashan kept going for the home side though and made 74, being bowled in the 48th over.
She found valuable help from debutant Anna Peterson (33) and Katie Perkins (24*) to help the Ferns finish their 50 overs at 233 for six.
Jenny Gunn was the pick of the bowlers for England and ended with figures of two for 30 from nine overs.
In reply England put on 33 for the first wicket, before Tammy Beaumont was dismissed for 12 by Morna Nielsen. Captain Charlotte Edwards then took over for her side with a well-made 84.
The Ferns looked a chance when they managed to dismiss Edwards and had the English 185 for four. It was a great time to have a new batsman come to the crease, with the away side needing close to a run a ball.
A late partnership killed the game for New Zealand though, with Laura Marsh and Arran Brindle putting on 45 runs to assure an England victory.
Morna Nielsen was the best of the White Fern bowlers, finishing with figures of two for 37 from ten overs.
The White Ferns looked a good chance of winning for much of the game, but lacked that final killer instinct when the game was on the line.
They get their chance at redemption on Saturday.
