Kerr shines as Wellington win grand final rematch

Amelia Kerr blazed away with the bat then claimed a crucial wicket as the Wellington Blaze made a winning start to the Twenty20 Super Smash against the Canterbury Magicians.

She made 71 off 55 – almost half her side’s total – then claimed four wickets as they won the rematch of last summer’s grand final by 44 runs.

Frankie Mackay won the toss for the hosts at Hagley Oval in Christchurch and sent the Blaze in, but they were soon on the back foot.

Opener Georgia Plimmer hit four fours in the third over on her way to making 34 off 25, but it was White Fern Kerr who was the star of the show, hitting eight boundaries in her innings.

(Amelia Kerr 71 off 55, Georgia Plimmer 34 off 25, Leigh Kasperek 28 off 26; Frankie Mackay 3-23)

(Frankie Mackay 41no off 45; Amelia Kerr 4-12, Xara Jetly 2-20, Thamsyn Newton 2-11) by 44 runs.

Leigh Kasperek made 28 off 26 to give Kerr useful support down the order and the Blaze finished with 145-6.

The Magicians were without seamer Lea Tahuhu, who was playing as a batter only, but Mackay took 3-23, including the wickets of Plimmer and Kasperek, to keep the Blaze’s total from getting out of hand.

Any hopes the home team had of chasing down their target of 146 took an early blow when openers Nat Cox and Abby Gerken departed for 7 and a golden duck on T20 debut respectively.

Kerr then got the big scalp of international team-mate Amy Satterthwaite with a googly that pitched well outside leg stump but bowled the left-hander around her legs and left her bamboozled and on her way for 15 off 13.

Mackay and Jacinta Savage guided the Magicians through to 53-3 at the halfway mark, with 93 needed off the last 60 balls.

Savage fell for 17 off 23, caught and bowled by Thamsyn Newton, and Kerr returned to remove Tahuhu, for a secondball duck, and Missy Banks, for 1, in the same over.

The leg-spinner finished with 4-12 from her four overs, while off-spinner Xara Jetly took 2-20 from her four, and Newton took 2-11 as the Magicians were dismissed for 101 in the 19th over

beat Canterbury Magicians 101