All other cricket in New Zealand has been affected by the miserable summer weather so it was no surprise that the start of the women's State League should not prove immune to problems caused by rain.

The Canterbury match with Wellington at the Village Green in Christchurch suffered from a thunderstorm that struck the Garden City around noon today.

Wellington, who were asked to bat were 53/3 after 19 overs. Anna O'Leary scored 20 and Maia Lewis 10. The weather did not clear sufficiently to allow a restart.

They will be hopeful for better weather tomorrow when they are scheduled to meet again.

In Dunedin, the Otago Sparks batted first against Central Districts at Logan Park and were 102/5 after 39 overs when rain forced players from the ground.

Erin McDonald had taken one for 21 from her 10 overs while Kate Pulford had two for 20 from nine overs.

At 4pm the umpires decided to abandon play because of the weather.

For Otago, Elizabeth Scurr and Rachel Pullar each scored 20.

© CricInfo