Sophie Ecclestone has taken a blinder off her own bowling. Maddy Green danced down the track and walloped the ball back at Ecclestone, who reached instinctively to her left to take a marvellous two-handed catch. She puts her hand over her mouth, surprised by her own brilliance.
12th over: New Zealand 69-4 (Green 10, Halliday 23) Heather Knight continues to shuffle her bowlers. Gibson is timed stylishly over extra cover for three by Halliday, who continues to look in excellent touch.
Green has a bit of fortune later in the over when a leading edge loops to safety on the off side.
11th over: New Zealand 63-4 (Green 9, Halliday 18) Ecclestone off, Dean on. Halliday blasts her first legitimate delivery straight to long off, where Gibson drops a sharp but relatively straightforward catch. To compound her frustration, the ball disappears over her shoulder for four. A large helping of singles, wides and twos make it a good over for New Zealand, 13 from it.
This fifth-wicket pair have now doubled the score, a fine effort in the circumstances. New Zealand were in all sorts when they came together.
10th over: New Zealand 50-4 (Green 8, Halliday 10) Filer returns to the attack. She’s troubled all the batters today, with an average speed of 74mph, and she almost gets a deserved wicket off the last ball of the over. Green, beaten for pace, looped the ball tantalisingly on the off side. Filer ran across and dived forward but couldn’t quite reach it.
9th over: New Zealand 46-4 (Green 7, Halliday 8) Halliday, who has started with a busy authority, drives Ecclestone over the covers for a couple. Then Green gets the first boundary of this partnership with a deceptively well-timed push through the covers.
8th over: New Zealand 37-4 (Green 1, Halliday 5) Having taken two catches in as many overs, Dani Gibson comes into the attack. A quiet over, sensibly milked for five runs. This is no time for big shots.
7th over: New Zealand 32-4 (Green 0, Halliday 1)
England are running riot. Sophie Ecclestone, on for Nat Sciver-Brunt, sees Charlie Dean’s fifth-ball wicket and raises it by striking with her second. Plimmer comes down the track, more in hope than expectation, and picks out Gibson at deep mid-on.
6th over: New Zealand 29-3 (Bates 10, Green 0) That’s the end of a superb Powerplay for England, their best in the field all series.
Charlie Dean, who took four wickets in the fourth T2oI, strikes with her fifth ball. Suzie Bates came down the track and dragged straight to mid-on, where Dani Gibson took a comfortable catch. That’s a hammer blow for New Zealand.
5th over: New Zealand 22-2 (Bates 10, Plimmer 4) Sciver-Brunt continues. Wyatt misses a run-out chance from midwicket, with Bates well short after being called through for an iffy single by Plimmer.
That single is the only run from another terrific over by Sciver-Brunt, who has figures of 3-0-7-2. She might as well bowl straight through.
4th over: New Zealand 21-2 (Bates 10, Plimmer 3) A Filer no-ball means a free hit for New Zealand, though Bates can only club it over the bowler’s head for a single.
Plimmer doesn’t look too comfortable against Filer. She’s beaten, slices a couple over the cover and then wears a short ball on the body. Bates takes a more aggressive option, charging down the track to belt successive deliveries for four and two.
3rd over: New Zealand 10-2 (Bates 3, Plimmer 0) Heather Knight said she would have bowled first had she won the toss; you can see why. The new ball is doing a bit and England have started superbly.
Two for Nat Sciver-Brunt. Amelia Kerr, stuck in the crease because Amy Jones has come up to the stumps, mistimes a lofted straight drive high in the air. Alice Capsey runs round from mid-on to take a comfortable catch.
2nd over: New Zealand 9-1 (Bates 2, A Kerr 5) Lauren Filer shares the new ball. Her extra pace takes a bit of adjustment; after missing a couple of attacking strokes outside off stump, Kerr premeditates a ramp for four. A terrific over from Filer ends with a big inswinger that Kerr inside-edges onto the pad.
1st over: New Zealand 5-1 (Bates 2, A Kerr 1) The captain Amelia Kerr is the new batter.
An early wicket for England. Nat Sciver-Brunt, who almost bowled Suzie Bates with the first ball of the match, has Bernadine Bezuidenhout caught behind later in the over. Bezuidenhout tried to cut a ball that cramped her for room and took a thin edge through to Amy Jones. The end.
Here come the players. It’s a windy day in Wellington – who knew – although the sun is shining brightly. Suzie Bates and Bernardine Bezuidenhout will open the batting.
One change for England: Lauren Filer replaces Lauren Bell, who is being rested ahead of the ODI series.
New Zealand make two changes: Georgia Plimmer and Lea Tahuhu come in for Hannah Rowe and the injured Sophie Devine.
New Zealand Bates, Bezuidenhout, A Kerr (c), Plimmer, Green, Halliday, Gaze (wk), J Kerr, Tahuhu, Mair, Jonas.
England Wyatt, Bouchier, Capsey, Sciver-Brunt, Knight (c), Jones (wk), Dunley, Gibson, Ecclestone, Dean, Filer.
Amelia Kerr, who is captaining New Zealand on her home ground in the absence of Sophie Devine, says it looks a decent pitch and highlights that all four games have been won the team batting first.
Heather Knight isn’t too disappointing after losing yet another toss – she says England would have bowled first.
Look, there are no dead rubbers, not in a World Cup year. Sure, England have an unassailable 3-1 lead going intotoday’s fifth and final T20I, but this series was only ever partly about winning. Both New Zealand and England are still working out their squads and XIs for the T20 World Cup in September, and this match should give them more protein for the noggin.
Maia Bouchier has already taken the fast lane into the England squad, and perhaps the first XI, with two performances of coruscating brilliance in Nelson and Wellington. A third successive fifty would make her undroppable, if she isn’t already, going into the home summer.
England may decide to have a look at some of their fringe players, including Tammy Beaumont and Lauren Filer in particular. There are eight more T20Is this summer, so this isn’t the be-all and end-all for this players, but life can move pretty fast when a World Cup is on the horizon.
Sophie Devine’s quad injury means New Zealand will have to make at least one change as well. We’ll have the toss and team news shortly.
The match begins at midnight GMT, 1pm in Wellington.
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