PALLEKELE: Luke Wright blasted 76 off 43 balls as England kept alive their title defence with a six-wicket victory against New Zealand in a World Twenty20 Super Eight match on Saturday.
Wright, who made 99 against Afghanistan in the group stages, hit five massive sixes and an equal number of boundaries and added 89 runs for the third wicket with Eoin Morgan (30) as England reached their target of 149 with seven balls to spare.
New Zealand spinners Daniel Vettori and Nathan McCullum dismissed the openers cheaply to put England’s chase under pressure, but the partnership between Wright and Morgan shut them out of the match.
Wright was named Man-of-the-Match for his supreme batting.
Paceman Steve Finn picked up 3-16 runs as New Zealand were restricted to 148 for six after captain Ross Taylor won the toss and opted to bat first.
The lanky seamer dismissed the dangerous Martin Guptill and Brendon McCullum in his first spell to put New Zealand on the backfoot from where they never recovered.
Left-hander James Franklin (50) hit some lusty blows towards the end of the innings to prop up New Zealand after they were reduced to 67 for four wickets at one stage.
The Black Caps, who play West Indies on Monday, are now on the brink of elimination having lost both their Super Eight matches to Sri Lanka and England. They will need to beat West Indies as well as have other results go their way. (Reuters)
