New Zealand women open tour with easy win in Utrecht

New Zealand's women's cricket team kicked off their European tour with a comfortable 169-run win over the Netherlands in Utrecht today.

The Netherlands side asked the TelstraClear White Ferns to bat first in the 50-overs match.

Rebecca Rolls and Nicola Payne put on 65 for the opening partnership with Rolls scoring 33 runs off 34 balls before she was the first dismissed in the innings.

Payne scored 37 from 66 balls before departing at 87. Emily Drumm and Kate Pulford scored 66 for the third wicket, and each scored 36 before Drumm was dismissed while Pulford was run out 18 runs later.

Haidee Tiffen and Kathryn Ramel were out for nine and seven respectively before Aimee Mason (17), Rachel Pullar (21 not out) and Anna Corbin (10 not out) took the score through to 245/7.

The New Zealanders were helped by an excess of extras which topped the scoreboard at 39, including 29 wides.

The home team were soon in trouble and while Pauline te Beest, who showed the benefits of her summers spent playing in New Zealand in recent years, scored 23, she was the only Netherlands player to achieve double figures.

They were dismissed for 76, scored off 41 overs, with the last three wickets falling to Pullar without any addition to the score. Pullar, who was named player of the match, took three wickets for 10 runs from her eight overs.

New Zealand gave all its bowlers a workout in the innings with eight bowlers used, all of them bowling cheaply. Other wicket-takers included Corbin, with two for four off four overs, Ramel with two for seven off five overs, Nicola Browne with one for eight off four, Mason one for 22 off six and Pulford one for seven off five.