New Zealand confirmed a ticket for the final of the Women’s T20 World Cup 2024, beating West Indies by 8 runs in a nail-biting semi-final showdown. Batting first, New Zealand churned out 128 runs at the loss of 9 wickets in the allotted 20 overs. In the end, West Indies could amass just 120 runs for the loss of 8 wickets.

Cheers And Tears Flow Again

When the Kiwi players, led by Kerr, went jumping with glee, others hugged each other while leaving open for all to see on their faces the drama of going into a final. For players at West Indies, the defeat was almost visibly tearing them apart. This was a roll of fate for them as they had lost earlier at their semi-final clash in 2016 when it was West Indies who emerged victorious.

Interestingly, New Zealand Women have qualified for the final of the Women’s T20 World Cup for the third time; they were runners-up in the first two editions in 2009 and 2010 respectively.

Player Of The Match: Eden Carson

“As you can see, I’m really emotional but really proud of the girls. When Deandra Dottin was pumping us… the girls just believed and stuck it out and we got over the line. We really had to defend another low total, below-par, had to get early wickets against West Indies, they are a dangerous side. We saw how the West Indies bowled, they bowled a bit more back-of-a-length and it worked, we bowled a bit full, it’s alright”.

Statistics:

Most Wickets in a Single Women’s T20 World Cup Edition

13 Wickets: Anya Shrubsole (ENG-W) – 2014

13 Wickets: Megan Schutt (AUS-W) – 2020

12 Wickets: Amelia Kerr (NZ-W) – 2024 (currently active)

11 Wickets: Jess Jonassen (AUS-W) – 2012

11 Wickets: Sophie Ecclestone (ENG-W) – 2023

Most Sixes in a Single Women’s T20 World Cup Edition

13 Sixes: Harmanpreet Kaur (IND-W) – 2018

9 Sixes: Deandra Dottin (WI-W) – 2010

9 Sixes: Alyssa Healy (AUS-W) – 2020

9 Sixes: Shafali Verma (IND-W) – 2020

9 Sixes: Deandra Dottin (WI-W) – 2024