Captain Paul Collingwood led England to their first victory in the one-day series against New Zealand with a six-wicket win in Auckland.

Opting to field, England had the Kiwis 95-6 but Jacob Oram smashed 88 off 91 balls to help the home side to 234-9.

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Collingwood hit three sixes in 70 from 50 balls to leave the series at 2-1.

It was an important victory for England, who were comprehensively beaten having made low scores batting first in the opening matches.

With Dimitri Mascarenhas and Luke Wright recalled at the expense of Graeme Swann and Ravi Bopara, the tourists looked a different team.

Anderson, who failed to take a wicket in the two previous games, struck in the second over and England were dominant.

He surprised Brendon McCullum with a short one that nipped back at the right-hander and forced him to fend to second slip.

But together with Ryan Sidebottom and Stuart Broad, England's seamers found the right areas consistently and allowed the captain to bowl them through the 20 overs of powerplays.

In that time Jamie How drove Broad in his first over low to backward point, Jesse Ryder, having flicked Anderson effortlessly many rows back for six at square-leg, miscued another attempt and was caught in the deep, while Scott Styris was smartly snaffled by Mascarenhas at short mid-wicket.

Although it might have been better for England had Peter Fulton remained at the crease, Collingwood ended his painfully slow innings by uprooting his off-stump with his sixth delivery.

After seeing the dangerous Oram get an inside edge past the stumps for four, the first boundary for 10 overs, Sidebottom then saw Asad Rauf turn down what looked like a cast-iron lbw appeal.

Oram himself was the victim of bad luck in a bizarre situation when he thumped a six over long-on, but umpire Rauf was still scribbling in his notebook and not at his mark so the delivery had to be bowled again.

For all the improvements in the seam department, England allowed run-out chances to go begging when shies from close to the stumps failed to hit the target.

And Mascarenhas, though sharp in the field, proved ineffective and expensive with the ball, and was hit for four sixes.

Oram found the perfect foil in Vettori, who played in calm fashion as the fifty stand came up in 51 balls, before picking out the solitary fielder at deep mid-wicket.

Broad returned to have Kyle Mills well caught at deep mid-wicket but was pulled away for successive sixes by Oram, who fell to a brilliant catch by Bell running backwards and diving full length in the penultimate over.

Initially chasing 235, England needed a sound start, and nearly got the complete opposite with the very first delivery when Phil Mustard got halfway down the pitch before being sent back, just managing to beat How's direct hit.

Mustard thumped two fours and top-edged a six before taking a badly judged run to Vettori's left hand and falling short as another throw rattled into the stumps, England's seventh run-out of the series.

After a short rain delay, Alastair Cook again got into difficulties and, attempting to force the pace, dragged in ungainly fashion to mid-on.

Bell pulled his opening delivery imperiously to the boundary and Pietersen had made only 13 when the partnership reached fifty.

But though never at his electrifying best, Pietersen battled through the briefly returning rain and struck three successive boundaries off Paul Hitchcock.

Rauf's unfortunate day continued when he gave Bell out despite an apparent inside edge into the pad when Vettori's arm ball pinned him, with England needing 91 from 101 balls.

In Vettori's next over, another arm ball accounted for Pietersen though his anger when leaving the field was at himself rather than the umpire.

Collingwood was joined by Owais Shah and the pair played sensibly to keep the rate around a run a ball, recording a fifty stand in 51 balls.

The skipper calmly flicked two waist hight full tosses for six and ensured he was there at the end of an important run chase.

(BBC)

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