First T20 in Christchurch washed out
England had posted 153-6 before rain arrived
Sam Curran (49* off 35) led recovery from 81-5
Second game of three-match series on Monday at Hagley Oval
Well, that's just about your lot from this live text commentary.
England's men face New Zealand in the second T20 international at Christchurch on Tuesday. That starts at 07:15 BST. We will, of course, be live with that one.
Here's some other stories for your reading pleasure:
New Zealand skipper Mitchell Santner: "The boys started extremely well with the new ball, looked pretty challenging out there, and it was a pretty good performance. It was doing a bit today and it was handy to chuck the ball around. It's nice when you can throw the ball to someone and they are able to respond.
"This series is a building block to what we have coming up. It's slightly different wickets. India is traditionally slow but it can be very flat so we need a well balance squad. First things first we want to win a series at home in front of our own fans.
"We pride ourselves on adapting so if the wicket does the same again in Monday's match we'll be ready. It depends what they do with it - it might be flatter. We were pretty clinical there to keep chipping away to take wickets."
England captain Harry Brook: "It pitch did a little bit to start with. Matt Henry, especially, made the most of the surface.
"We obviously want to adapt to the situation and the surface but with the depth of batting we've got, we can go hard all the way through."
On improvements to be made: "Probably just be quicker to adapt to the surface. Using your options, knowing your options and executing."
On captaincy: "It's been good fun, great bunch of lads and all loving being in the squad. We're looking forward to the rest of the series."
The players from both sides have just made their way down from the dressing rooms to shake hands. We'll be hearing the thoughts of both captains shortly.
Spoke too soon. It's the hope that gets you.
The weather has beaten us at the Hagley Oval on this occasion with insufficient time to dry things and get everything ready.
Match abandoned.
The covers are now coming off at the Hagley Oval.
The crowd thinned out considerably.
We have 20 odd minutes to get this game on.
Thanks for the update, James. Hope you've managed to find some cover.
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Rain easing. Dare to dream. Having said that, it's become too wet for the group of five dressed as Kermit the frog.
James from Stockton-on-Tees in Christchurch
Image source, Getty ImagesFans are starting to disappear from the Hagley Oval now having given up hope of this match restarting.
Word reaches me that the cut off for New Zealand's innings to start is 22:33 NZDT which is 10:33 BST.
The body language does not look great among the decision makers - chiefly umpires and ground staff - as the rain continues to pour.
Hands in pockets, arms folded, hands on hips.
Rain is still teeming down at the Hagley Oval in Christchurch.
We have started to lose overs from this contest now.
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Average score on this ground is 150-60. Rain coming midway makes it tougher. This is a competitive score. Let’s see.
Ross in Devon
Image source, Getty ImagesIf it's any consolation on a grey day in the UK, cricket fans huddled together at the Hagley Oval look thoroughly miserable as they wait around with the rain falling.
The big white sheet covering the square, and the one covering the run-ups for the bowlers, are now both back on.
It looks like we have to wait a little longer for New Zealand to begin their chase.
The umpires are just out in the middle assessing conditions.
The big covers have been taken off but with a few spots still in the air the groundstaff are weighing up whether to put them back on.
Image source, Getty ImagesUmbrellas are being opened and pac-a-macs are being put on in the crowd at the Hagley Oval.
The covers have just been put in place as well.
Yes, it's raining.
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Remember when fast food restaurants first emerged? You'd accept slightly under-par burgers or chicken in exchange for the cheap price and speed of service. Then the price increased and the speed declined. That's what England have achieved with T20. It's not great cricket but now they're not even scoring quickly or smashing boundaries.
Dave in London
What preparation was there for this series? We seem to send players into these games without any warm up games in order to get used to foreign conditions.
Phil
Ah, how I've missed the negativity spiral that is supporting the England men's cricket team. New Zealand have bowled well and it looks a tough pitch to score on when the pace is off, let's at least wait until both teams have batted.
Nathan
Image source, Getty ImagesNew Zealand bowler Matt Henry: "I think playing cricket here this there's always a bit of the unknown. The pace of the wicket is on the slower side.
"So it's not a surprise, but when we bat we need to read it as quick as possible. The batters have to back themselves. We need to absorb and put the pressure back on."
Thank you, Matthew.
Your namesake in the New Zealand team has just been speaking about conditions at the Hagley Oval.
I have been wrong before but I think England have a sniff here. The pitch isn't the easiest.
Timothy Abraham will take you through the chase.
| Batter | Runs | Balls | Dots | 4s | 6s | Minutes | Strike Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Salt,caught Chapman, bowled Duffy Salt, caught Chapman, bowled Duffy | 3 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 75.00 |
Buttler,caught Henry, bowled Bracewell Buttler, caught Henry, bowled Bracewell | 29 | 25 | 9 | 2 | 1 | 55 | 116.00 |
Bethell,caught and bowled Henry Bethell, caught and bowled Henry | 15 | 13 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 11 | 115.38 |
Brook,bowled Neesham Brook, bowled Neesham | 20 | 14 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 18 | 142.86 |
Banton,caught Neesham, bowled Santner Banton, caught Neesham, bowled Santner | 9 | 9 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 100.00 |
S Curran,not out S Curran, not out | 49 | 35 | 10 | 3 | 2 | 49 | 140.00 |
Cox,caught Mitchell, bowled Jamieson Cox, caught Mitchell, bowled Jamieson | 16 | 18 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 22 | 88.89 |
Carse,not out Carse, not out | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 100.00 |
Extras, no balls 1, wides 3, byes 0, leg byes 5, total 9 Extras, no balls 1, wides 3, byes 0, leg byes 5, total 9 | |||||||
Total,153 for 6 20.0 overs Total,153 for 6 20.0 overs |
| Bowler | Overs | Maidens | Runs | Wickets | Dots | No balls | Wides | 4s | 6s | Economy rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Henry | 4.0 | 0 | 26 | 1 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 6.50 |
Duffy | 4.0 | 0 | 45 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 11.25 |
Jamieson | 4.0 | 0 | 27 | 1 | 9 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 6.75 |
Santner | 4.0 | 0 | 20 | 1 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5.00 |
Neesham | 2.0 | 0 | 20 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 10.00 |
Bracewell | 2.0 | 0 | 10 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5.00 |
| Fall of wicket | Batter |
|---|---|
11 for 1 (1.4 overs) | Salt |
29 for 2 (4.1 overs) | Bethell |
64 for 3 (7.6 overs) | Brook |
75 for 4 (10.1 overs) | Banton |
81 for 5 (11.3 overs) | Buttler |
114 for 6 (16.4 overs) | Cox |