NZ vs ENG, 3rd T20I: David Malan's Fifty Goes In Vain As England Crumble In Chase

The Black Caps struck with back to back wickets and derailed England's chase who were ultimately restricted to 166/7 in 20 overs

Colin de Grandhomme’s fiery fifty followed by a disciplined bowling show by the pacers helped New Zealand beat England by 14 runs in the third T20I at the Saxton Oval played on Tuesday. With this victory, the hosts now lead the 5-match series 2-1. In pursuit of 181, England at one stage were on course of winning with 139/3 on the scoreboard in the 15th over. However, the Black Caps struck with back to back wickets and derailed England's chase who were ultimately restricted to 166/7 in their allotted 20 overs. For New Zealand, Lockie Ferguson and Blair Tickner were the chief tormentors as they both picked two-two wickets each and gave 50 runs in their eight overs.

VICTORY! The BLACKCAPS take T20I 3️⃣ showing some good fight in the field! 14-runs was the margin of victory, BLACKCAPS lead the five-match series 2-1 🏏

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 CARD | https://t.co/X5hbsqOPWP #NZvENG #cricketnation pic.twitter.com/nl6hwHMKQj — BLACKCAPS (@BLACKCAPS) November 5, 2019

Earlier, after electing to bat, the Black Caps went off to a flying start as the openers collected 40 runs within the first four overs before Martin Guptill - after scoring 33 off 17 balls - became the first scalp of Patrick Brown. Later, de Grandhomme (55) built a 66-run partnership with Ross Taylor (27) to provide the team with a launchpad to unleash. Towards the end, Mitchell Santner and James Neesham played cameos of 15 and 20 to take New Zealand to 180/7.

England lose 5️⃣ wickets in 10 runs to hand New Zealand a 14-run win in the 3rd T20I 🤯

The hosts lead the series 2-1. Scorecard #NZvENG ⬇️ https://t.co/kXTsSjV6Gw pic.twitter.com/lT50tjQybn — ICC (@ICC) November 5, 2019

England started their chase on a bright note as Tom Banton and Dawid Malan collected 27 runs in the first three overs before the former was clean bowled by Tickner at his individual score of 18. Malan didn't get affected by his partner's loss and along with James Vince, stitched a 63-run partnership, taking England to 90 in 10 overs. However, just when England seemed to be cruising, Malan lost his wicket after contributing with 55 runs from 34 balls.

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 after: 15 overs → 139/3 16 overs → 142/4 17 overs → 147/5 18 overs → 150/7 19 overs → 162/7 20 overs → 166/7

🔝 class death bowling helps 🇳🇿 secure a 14-run win in the third T20I.#NZvENG report ⬇️ https://t.co/ftoaqBxMnO — ICC (@ICC) November 5, 2019

Skipper Eoin Morgan then took the team to 139/3 within the 15-over mark. However, just Santner got Morgan caught by Munro after the England captain made 18 runs. The England skipper's wicket led to a mini-collapse as the Three Lions went on to lose four wickets in the next three overs and could add mere 10 runs. Tom Curran and Saqib Mahmood did try to take England across the line. But the task was too much as the visitors ultimately fell short by 14 runs and conceded a 1-2 lead in the five-match series. The two teams will now lock horns in Napier in the fourth T20I on Friday.