New Zealand win T20 series after 2nd match rained off

New Zealand vs England: New Zealand clinched the Twenty20 series against England after the second and final match between the teams was abandoned Thursday because of persistent rain, with just two balls having been bowled.

Needing to win at The Oval to square the series 1-1, England lost Michael Lumb to the second ball of its innings to lie on 2-1 when drizzle that had been falling during the toss and when play began turned heavier.

The rain didn’t relent and a decision was taken to call the match off at 9.07pm local time- more than 2.5 hours after the start of play.

The Kiwis won the first match at the same London venue on Tuesday by five runs, ensuring they will head home having completed a limited-overs double over England this summer. They won the ODI series 2-1, with England taking the Test series 2-0.

The washout denied Kevin Pietersen, who turned 33 on Thursday, any time in the middle on his return to the England team after three months out with a knee injury. England has more important business this summer – the Ashes series against Australia begins next month.

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• IPL Spot-Fixing 2013: Bail plea of Ajit Chandila, others deferred till July 1


• Indian team leaves for West Indies tri-series


• New Zealand captain McCullum keen to face Pietersen


• New Zealand beat England by 5 runs in 1st T20


• Asad Rauf and Billy Bowden dropped from ICC Elite Umpire’s list

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Shweta Pandey

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