New Zealand, the hosts of the 2022 World Cup are all set to play the final match of their world cup campaign against Pakistan on Saturday at Christchurch. Captain Sophie Devine feels it was “Not the Final we wanted to play” as she expressed her disappointment about the team not making it to the Final or the Semis.
During the pre-match press conference, Devine said, “I think we’ve got to be realistic here. I don’t know the exact numbers, but we do know that this is likely our final game here against Pakistan and we want to play it like that. Coach Bob Carter also mentioned in training earlier today that tomorrow will be our final. It’s not the final that we wanted to play.”
New Zealand is highly unlikely to reach the semifinals in their home World Cup.
Here’s what Devine said in the pre-match virtual press conference 👇#CWC22 #TeamNewZealand pic.twitter.com/Narzod83VP
— Female Cricket #CWC22 (@imfemalecricket) March 25, 2022
She also felt that the team will go out there and play with passion and pride for one last time in the tournament for their fans, their family, and their country. She also hopes to be fully fit for tomorrow’s game as she suffered a back injury in the previous game, against England.
When asked about the area that resulted in them getting eliminated from the tournament, Devine honestly pointed it towards their batting department as the batters failed to step up and post those extra 20-30 runs that could have given them a different result.
JUST IN:
Lea Tahuhu has been ruled out of the last league game to be played tomorrow against Pakistan,
she has not recovered from her hamstring injury sustained in Auckland.#CWC22 #NZvPAK pic.twitter.com/6F8IrGBQ7d
— Female Cricket #CWC22 (@imfemalecricket) March 25, 2022
While talking about the status of Lea Tahuhu for tomorrow’s game at her home ground, Devine said that Tahuhu is dealing with a hamstring injury and she’s set to miss out tomorrow. She feels sorry for Tahuhu as she’ll be unable to play in front of her home crowd. The team will also miss her experience on the field. But, she will be sitting in the dugout and will be cheering for the white ferns.
New Zealand in their final match of the 2022 World Cup will be taking on Pakistan on Saturday at Christchurch.
Follow Female Cricket on Instagram and Twitter for all the latest news and updates around Women’s Cricket World Cup 2022
Loves all things female cricket