HAMILTON (New Zealand): New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum inspired his team to a crushing 55-run win over England in the second Twenty20 international in Hamilton yesterday, levelling the series 1-1.

Determined to make amends after being humbled in the opening fixture, New Zealand made 192 for six after being sent into bat then bowled out the tourists for 137.

McCullum led from the front with a captain’s knock of 74, including five sixes and six fours, as the Black Caps made the most of the short Seddon Park boundaries to punish the England attack.

The hosts also produced a much improved display in the field to have England reeling at 47 for five at one point before a feisty 54 from Jos Buttler and a 22-run cameo by James Tredwell helped to make the scoreline respectable.

“Credit to New Zealand, they played fantastically and took the game away from us with the bat,” England captain Stuart Broad said.

“We didn’t execute our skills 100% right. At the half-way point we thought we were in with a chance but obviously losing early wickets like we did meant we were always chasing the game.”

New Zealand openers Martin Guptill (47) and Hamish Rutherford (40) provided a solid platform for McCullum to blast away late in the innings in a display that included three sixes off a Stuart Broad over.

Between them the three scored 10 sixes as New Zealand reached its fourth highest T20 total. — AFP

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