India, led by skipper Harmanpreet Kaur, were up against New Zealand, led by skipper Sophie Devine, on the 2nd day of the warm-up fixtures. Multiple rain delays ensured that the game was eventually reduced to a 42-overs per side contest. New Zealand got off to a steady start, but at the cost of both openers, inside the power play.
Skipper Sophie Devine joined Amelia Kerr at the crease, and the duo led the recovery with a much-needed 91-run partnership for the 3rd wicket, which also took them closer to the 130-run mark. Shree Charani broke the stand, by sending Amelia Kerr (40 off 67 balls) back to the pavilion in the 25th over of the innings to provide the much-needed third breakthrough for India.
The home side bounced back with a couple of quick breakthroughs, sending the likes of Sophie Devine (54 off 54 balls) and Brooke Halliday (11 off 18 balls) back to the pavilion, reducing them to 153/5 in the 30th over of the innings. Wicket-keeper batter Isabella Gaze joined Maddy Green at the crease with a vital 47-run partnership for the 6th wicket, which took them to the 200-run mark.
Arundhati Reddy, who suffered a blow to her leg on the first day of the warm-up fixture, came back strong and ended Isabella Gaze’s (21 off 31 balls) stay at the crease in the 39th over of the innings, to provide the 6th breakthrough for her side. New Zealand eventually ended up with a fighting total of 232/8 in their allotted quota of 42 overs. Maddy Green stayed unbeaten on 49* (42 balls), Jess Kerr (12 off 10 balls) chipped in with crucial contributions with the bat towards the end.
Shree Charani (9-0-49-3), Arundhati Reddy (9-0-42-2), and Kranti Goud (5-0-31-2) were impressive with the ball for India. Pratika Rawal (3-1-12-1) also had a scalp to her name, crucial for her confidence as a bowler heading into the World Cup.
Chasing a revised target of 237, the Indian openers, Uma Chetry and Pratika Rawal, got their side off to a promising start with a 54-run opening partnership. Jess Kerr cleaned up Pratika Rawal (15 off 18 balls) back to the pavilion in the 9th over of the run chase to provide the first breakthrough for New Zealand. Another enterprising innings at the top of the order from Uma Chetry (38 off 36 balls) came to an end in the 10th over of the run chase. Eden Carson provided the 2nd breakthrough for her side.
Skipper Harmanpreet Kaur joined Harleen Deol at the crease, and the duo took India into a comfortable position in the run chase with a massive 132-run partnership for the 3rd wicket, taking the total past the 200-run mark. After scoring a brisk half-century (74 off 79 balls), Deol decided to retire out in the 34th over of the run chase, allowing the likes of Richa Ghosh to flex her muscle.
But it wasn’t to be as the promising left-arm quick Bree Illing removed both Richa Ghosh and Jemimah Rodrigues back to the pavilion inside the next five overs. However, India eventually got over the line with 4 wickets in hand and 10 balls to spare. Skipper Harmanpreet Kaur (69 off 86 balls) led from the front with an impressive half-century, getting herself into rhythm, before the tournament gets underway on 30th September.
Bree Illing (9-1-34-2), Jess Kerr (6-0-43-2), and Amelia Kerr (9-0-41-0) were the top performers with the ball for New Zealand.
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