Behind a knock of 112 from Dean Brownlie, New Zealand A have cruised to a 172 run win over Kent in a 50 over match.
Originally scheduled to be a Three Day match between the two sides, rain at Canterbury saw the first two days abandoned without a ball being bowled. That led to the decision to make the match a One Dayer and New Zealand continued their strong limited overs form.
The rain from the previous days made for a difficult pitch to bat on, so it was no surprise when Kent opted to put New Zealand in when they won the toss. However, the visitors made a strong start, with Hamish Rutherford (56) and Brownlie putting on 124 for the second wicket.
Rutherford’s departure in the 25th over led to a steady stream of wickets falling from that point forth, but it wouldn’t deny Brownlie his ton, who brought up the milestone after 91 balls.
The team would eventually be dismissed for 239 after 28.2 overs, but it was a respectable score on a great bowling deck.
And the New Zealand A bowlers didn’t take long to exploit this. The strike force of Matt Henry, Doug Bracewell and Hamish Bennett all chipped in with two wickets apiece, while spinner Mark Craig finished off the job with three scalps.
All in all it led to a rampant victory, with Kent all out for just 67 after 23.4 overs.
Brownlie said it was good to see the team keep trending in the right direction.
“After a couple of days of rain the pitch was challenging to bat on, so while 239 doesn’t sound like much we definitely thought it was defendable,” said Brownlie.
“It’s always nice to get runs, but it’s much more satisfying when they help contribute to a victory. The team are playing well at the moment and we just want to keep that momentum going and try to improve with each performance.”
New Zealand A have their final match of the tour against Surrey beginning Sunday night.
