England advanced to the semifinals of the Champions Trophy on Sunday after beating New Zealand by 10 runs at Sophia Gardens.
Alastair Cook’s 64 along with 38 from Joe Root helped England reach 169 all out off 23.3 overs in a match reduced to 24 overs per side due to rain.
Kyle Mills took 4-30 and Mitchell McClenaghan 3-36.
In reply, New Zealand could only reach 159-8 in its 24 overs, with Kane Williamson hitting 67 and Corey Anderson 30.
James Anderson finished with 3-32 and Ravi Bopara 2-26.
Cook provided the foundation for England’s innings, hitting four fours and two sixes, but he was fortunate to stay at the crease so long as Nathan McCullum dropped the England captain three times.
McCullum finally caught Cook at the fourth attempt off his own bowling but, with wickets in hand, Eoin Morgan (15) and Jos Buttler (14) added valuable runs to the total.
Williamson proved the only threat to England’s bowlers, hitting 67 off 54 balls, including eight boundaries and one six.
The top two teams advance from each group, with England through with four points.
New Zealand has three points and must wait for the result of the final Group A match between Sri Lanka and Australia at The Oval on Monday.
