Despite two disappointing defeats at the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026, New Zealand Women are trying to focus on the positives as they continue their fight to reach the semi-finals.
The defending champions have had a difficult start to their campaign. First, West Indies Women chased down New Zealand’s total of 162 with one ball remaining in a thrilling contest.
Their next match brought more disappointment as Sri Lanka Women also completed a successful chase in the final over, handing New Zealand a second straight defeat.
New Zealand finally got their first win of the tournament when they beat Ireland Women by four runs in a closely fought match. While that victory kept their semi-final hopes alive, the White Ferns still need other results to go their way and must beat Scotland Women to stay in the race.
Young batter Izzy Sharp believes the tough results have actually helped bring the team closer together.
“Yeah, I think we have to acknowledge that it was a bit of a disappointing start, not what we wanted,” Sharp told the media.
“I think you see a proper team culture when you lose games and there’s a different morale in the team. I think obviously when you’re winning everyone’s happy, but it’s how you come together when you’re losing and it’s not going well for you. And I think as a team we’ve been really good. We’ve stayed close. We know that we’re, as a unit, a pretty tight team. So, it’s been really cool.
“We know we’re better than that, but I think it’s just keeping the vibes high. We have been— like I said, we know we’re better than that, so trainings have just been a real focus on what we know we’re good at, and we’ve done all the hard work, so it’s just about coming together as a team, performing as a team, and yeah, awesome. It’s good.”
The win over Ireland gave New Zealand some much-needed confidence. Melie Kerr played an important role, scoring 30 runs and taking two wickets to help her side secure a narrow victory.
Although their chances of reaching the semi-finals are still slim, Sharp feels the team can take valuable lessons from the tournament.
“Not every World Cup’s the same,” Sharp continued.
“You can go from winning a World Cup last year to having a disappointing start. So, I think it’s been really cool. The team’s been really good. Not much has changed. We’re still a happy team, and we take a lot of pride in representing New Zealand. So, every game we go out there, it’s— we’re trying to play for our country and play the best that we can.”
Sharp also said the team has learned a lot from the losses and has worked hard on dealing with pressure situations.
“I think there’s been a lot of learnings, and like you say, losing actually does help you reflect a bit deeper into a game. But I think for us it’s just being able to absorb pressure, put pressure back on other teams, which we did nicely in that game against Ireland. So hopefully we can keep doing that. But yeah, I think it’s been good.”
New Zealand now take on Scotland Women in Bristol in a must-win Group 2 match. Both teams still have a chance of reaching the semi-finals, but a defeat would almost certainly end the losing team’s campaign.
For the White Ferns, the goal is clear — win against Scotland and keep their hopes alive heading into the final group-stage match.
Loves all things female cricket