New Zealand bashed South Africa, Australia gave the same trashing to England, and India proved to be too good for the West Indies on the second day of the warm-up matches ahead of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2024. These games gave these teams ample chances to warm-up well before the tournament.
New Zealand won by 8 wickets against South Africa
Melie Kerr played a very all-round exemplary match for New Zealand as they pounded South Africa with a victory in their first warm-up match by six wickets. With compatriot spinner Leigh Kasperek, the duo gave a shaking experience to the batting of South Africa and made the latter restrict their play to a total of 92.
Both the spinners shared three wickets each as Proteas struggled to handle the spin at The Sevens Stadium in Dubai. This fantastic performance proves that New Zealand is solidly entering the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2024.
New Zealand were given an early shock when Suzie Bates walked into the hut during the Powerplay, but a modest target of 93 proved no major problem for the White Ferns.
Melie Kerr and Sophie Devine began the innings, and they put up a good partnership for the second wicket, adding 36 runs before being separated by Shesh Naidu, who got the wicket of Kerr. The latter made full use of her time at the crease, blasting away 37 off 37 balls.
At that stage, New Zealand was almost in a commanding position to win, and with Brooke Halliday by her side, Devine effortlessly steered the side to an emphatic eight-wicket victory. This display brings out that New Zealand is keen on momentum as they begin their journey into the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2024.
Australia won by 33 runs against England
A fine fifty from Beth Mooney and an all-round display by Tahlia McGrath were enough to steer Australia to victory over England at the ICC Academy in Dubai on Sunday.
Mooney began the chase with a quickfire 30-ball 50 that had seven boundaries. She began targeting the spinners well, punishing all the spinners until the last bowler, in search of ropes. As the early wickets of Alyssa Healy and Elysse Perry fell, Ash Gardner played a defensive role to take the team to victory.
Tahlia McGrath then came in immediately after that and on reaching her own fifty, Mooney departed, scoring 31 off 22 balls to keep Australia driving while helping her team post 162/6.
England got off to a flier with Maia Bouchier taking attack on Kim Garth, hitting three boundaries off one over, but things had stabilised considerably for the Aussies as they dismissed both Bouchier and Danni Wyatt-Hodge inside the Powerplay.
Alice Capsey and Nat Sciver-Brunt steadied the innings with a 52-run partnership, before both set batters fell quickly in the form of Sophie Molineux and Tahlia McGrath respectively.
McGrath later did that effectively by taking two more wickets, and England eventually left 34 runs short of their target. This victory speaks about Australia’s strong form as they are now getting ready to host the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2024.
India won by 20 runs against West Indies
India started off their warm-up matches for the Women’s T20 World Cup on a high note, by outplaying West Indies by 20 runs.
The West Indians really dominated the power play and sent back India’s top three batters. Captain Hayley Matthews played an important role with the wicket of Harmanpreet Kaur and then carried on with the wicket of Smriti Mandhana off successive overs.
However, Jemimah Rodrigues and Yastika Bhatia steadied the ship with a crucial 50-run partnership. Rodrigues was even radiant, scoring a well-crafted half-century with 52 runs off 40 balls.
Late contributions by Deepti Sharma and Pooja Vastrakar led India beyond the total of 140 runs which had then prompted them to raise a challenging target for West Indies.
The West Indies, too, suffered an early jolt when they lost three wickets in quick succession, which included that of the captain Matthews. Shemaine Campbelle and Chinelle Henry tried to stabilize the innings with a partnership worth 57 runs but India responded fiercely by taking three wickets in just seven balls to regain control.
Asha Sobhana later broke the half-century partnership with a crucial wicket as Deepti Sharma joined in by taking two wickets in three balls. But that puts the West Indies in a difficult situation with 71/6.
Chinelle Henry made a hard push and remained unbeaten on 59, but in the later stages, West Indies crumbled under pressure as they could only muster 121/8 at the end of their innings, falling short of the target by 20 runs. It is a testament to India’s resilience as it shapes up for the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2024.
