Amy Jones revealed a mental refresh after a recent run drought was behind her match-winning 92 not out as England fought back to beat New Zealand in Wellington.
England were 79 for six in 17 overs chasing 208 in the first ODI, but Jones and Charlie Dean put on an unbroken stand of 130 as the tourists sealed a four-wicket victory with 52 balls to spare.
It was a spectacular return to form for Jones - who scored just 23 runs in four innings in the T20 series, although she did help England over the line with a brief cameo in the final match on Friday - as she went without an international fifty in 28 innings across all formats until December 2022.
But the 30-year-old wicketkeeper-batsman feels that clearing her head and getting back to basics has allowed her to shine as England took a 1-0 lead in the three-match series:
“Me and Deano were constantly saying ‘one ball at a time’ and ‘just react’, which kept us in the moment. For that to pay off, (this innings) ranks quite highly I’d say.”
Dean took three for 57 on her way to becoming the fastest woman to 50 ODI wickets as New Zealand collapsed from 90 for no loss to 207 all out in the 49th over.
As England's top order wobbled, Dean proved a useful foil for Jones with an unbeaten 42 off 70 deliveries, contributing just one four to Jones' 10 in a superb 83-ball innings.
But the pair were in perfect sync as they put on the highest partnership for the seventh wicket or lower in women's ODIs. The remaining two ODIs will be played in Hamilton.