Sarah Taylor guides England to victory

England 118 for 5 (17.4 overs: SJ Taylor 52* ) beat New Zealand 117 by five wickets
Scorecard

Sarah Taylor's unbeaten 52 provided the platform for England's five-wicket win over New Zealand in the second women's Twenty20 international at Bath Cricket Club, giving them a 2-0 lead in the three-match series.

Taylor's 50-ball innings was perfectly paced and included a superb six over long-on, and with Claire Taylor giving an early boost with a 13-ball 21, England were always ahead of the asking rate and they eased home with 14 balls to spare.

New Zealand, who paid for not using their full allocation over overs, were restricted by tight bowling and impressive fielding which produced three run-outs, including two at the top of the order, to reduce them to 18 for 3. They also struggled with a much slower and lower pitch than had been the case yesterday.

The losing captain Haidee Tiffen said: "We just wish it was a better result for us. England had a really really tough winter so to come back is a credit." Charlotte Edwards, England's captain, was delighted to take the Twenty20 series but expects a hard time in the one-dayers. "It will be a tightly fought series - the sides are really well matched."

The compact ground was packed, a reward for the decision to play the two matches at a more intimate venue. They enjoyed seeing England seal the series, bouncing right back from their winter of discontent - and their new coach Mark Dobson has now made it two wins in two.

The sides meet again in the final Twenty20 international at Taunton on Thursday.