Visitors England A registered a comprehensive win in the 3-match Twenty20 (T20) opener against New Zealand A to kick off their campaign. The second game is scheduled for 5:30 AM Indian Standard Time (IST) at the Sir John Davies Oval, Queenstown, on the 17th of March, 2024.
Squads:
New Zealand A – Kate Anderson, Sarah Asmussen, Saachi Shahri, Prue Catton, Flora Devonshire, Claudia Green, Mikaela Greig, Bree Illing, Polly Inglis, Hayley Jensen, Leigh Kasperek, Molly Penfold, Georgia Plimmer
England A – Georgia Adams, Hannah Baker, Alice Davidson-Richards, Tash Farrant, Kirstie Gordon, Freya Kemp, Emma Lamb, Ryana MacDonald-Gay, Sophie Munro, Grace Potts, Paige Scholfield, Grace Scrivens, Seren Smale, Rhianna Southby, Mady Villiers
Players to watch out:
Saachi Shahri
The 26-year-old batter in the recently concluded Super Smash, from 8 T20 outings, accumulated 126 runs but is a promising batter and displayed notable form in the One Dayers. Though Saachi hasn’t carried forward the momentum, departing for 11 in the T20 opener, she will be backed to find her footing.
Hayley Jensen
The 30-year-old bowling all-rounder had a decent Smash season, adding 63 runs to the tally and scalping 5 wickets. Hayley has been in outstanding form this series, registering a 3-fer in a warm-up T20, and followed up with another 3-fer (3/27) in the T20 opener, while also scoring 16 runs. She’ll be banked upon for the goods.
Mady Villiers
The 25-year-old all-rounder in the warm-up games in the lead-up to this struggled for runs; however, she was effective with the ball. Come the T20 opener, Mady returned to form with the bat, scoring 33, and continuing her bowling form, returned figures of 1/24. She’ll be counted on for all-round efforts.
Ryana MacDonald-Gay
The 20-year-old all-rounder didn’t find much success in the 2023 domestic T20 competition. However, warmed up for the series registering figures of 14 and 1/22, and in the first game of the series, she produced figures of 2/17, while also chipping in with a score of 11. It’ll be expected of the all-rounder to make the most of this form.
Pitch:
The center wicket at Sir John Davies Oval provides a well-balanced playing surface. Despite being good for batting, the average score in the 150s suggests that bowlers, particularly pacers, can expect some assistance from the pitch.
Weather:
It will be a pleasant day for cricket at Queenstown with no rain interruptions, despite cloudy skies. The temperature is forecasted to be around 10°C, with light winds and a humidity level of 66%.
Fantasy playing XI:
Seren Smale, Rhianna Southby, Georgia Adams, Georgia Plimmer, Saachi Shahri, Leigh Kasperek, Freya Kemp, Mady Villiers, Hayley Jensen, Molly Penfold, Ryana MacDonald-Gay
Match details:
Date – March 17, 2024
Time – 5:30 AM IST
Venue – Sir John Davies Oval, Queenstown
Broadcast – The game will be live-streamed on the New Zealand Cricket YouTube channel, and the scorecard can be accessed on the nzc.nz match center web portal.