\New Zealand led by skipper Sophie Devine was up against Australia led by skipper Alyssa Healy in the 10th match of the tournament. Healy won the toss and opted to bat first at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium. The Australian openers Beth Mooney and skipper Alyssa Healy got their side off to a solid start with a 41-run partnership, scoring at around 8 runs an over. Rosemary Mair picked up the big wicket of the opposition skipper Alyssa Healy to provide the first breakthrough for New Zealand.
Ellyse Perry joined Beth Mooney at the crease and the duo stitched another crucial 45-run partnership for the 2nd wicket to take their side close to the 100-run mark. Amelia Kerr picked up the wicket of Beth Mooney to provide the 2nd breakthrough for her side. Phoebe Litchfield joined Ellyse Perry at the crease and the duo took their side past the 100-run mark with a 23-run partnership for the 3rd wicket.
Amelia Kerr returned and struck twice in two balls to land a double blow to Australia, just ahead of the final phase of the innings. Australia eventually ended up with a competitive total of 148/8 in their quota of overs. Beth Mooney (40 off 32 balls), Ellyse Perry (30 off 24 balls), skipper Alyssa Healy (26 off 20 balls), and Phoebe Litchfield (18 off 18 balls), were the top performers with the bat for Australia. Amelia Kerr (4-0-26-4), Rosemary Mair (4-0-22-2), and Brooke Halliday (2-0-16-2) were the top performers with the ball for New Zealand.
Chasing a target of 149, New Zealand got off to a poor start as they lost the wicket of their opening batter Georgia Plimmer in the 3rd over of the innings with Megan Schutt providing the first breakthrough for Australia. Amelia Kerr joined Suzie Bates at the crease and the duo stitched a much-needed 47-run partnership for the 2nd wicket to take their side past the 50-run mark. Sophie Molineux cleaned up Suzie Bates to provide the 2nd breakthrough for her side.
New Zealand were eventually bundled out for 88 with four balls to spare. As a result, they fell 60 runs short of the target. The White Ferns suffered a horrible collapse as they lost their last 8 wickets for just 34 runs. Amelia Kerr (29 off 31 balls), Suzie Bates (20 off 27 balls), and Lea Tahuhu (11 off 10 balls) were the top performers with the bat for New Zealand.
Aussie bowlers too hot to handle 🔥
Sutherland & Schutt’s triple strikes seal New Zealand’s fate at 88!#CricketTwitter #T20WorldCup2024 pic.twitter.com/SHpYsCtOmU
— Female Cricket (@imfemalecricket) October 8, 2024
Megan Schutt (3.2-1-3-3), Annabel Sutherland (4-0-21-3), Sophie Molineux (4-0-15-2), and Georgia Wareham (4-0-21-1) were the top performers with the ball for Australia. Megan Schutt was awarded the Player of the Match for her exceptional spell (3.2-1-3-3) with the ball, her 2nd player of the Match award in two games for Australia in the 2024 T20 World Cup.
New Zealand slipped to 3rd position and took a hit to their NRR after 60-run loss.#CricketTwitter #T20WorldCup #AUSvNZ pic.twitter.com/ycC0aPFHgp
— Female Cricket (@imfemalecricket) October 8, 2024
Loves all things female cricket