Dubai: New Zealand came into the Women’s T20 World Cup with a 10-match losing streak — an abysmal record that dismissed their chances in the tournament.
On Monday, they qualified for the semi-finals, which makes them one of the four teams left to fight for the trophy. The Kiwi victory sent Pakistan and India crashing out of the tournament.
The Kiwis were not at their best, but they packed enough punch to floor Pakistan in the crunch game at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium. The 54-run win swelled their tally to six points and fetched them their first semi-final spot since 2016. New Zealand finished second in Group A, behind Australia who have eight points.
A delighted captain Sophie Devine told the official broadcaster that the semi-final qualification has not quite sunk in yet. “We will celebrate tonight, but we are looking forward to the next phase of this tournament. The results [the string of 10 losses] have not gone our way leading into this tournament. But I’m most proud that we stuck to the processes. When we get it right, we can beat any team in the world. To do that in the World Cup, I am incredibly proud.”
The return of captain Fatima Sana, who had gone home following her father’s demise, rejuvenated Pakistan. She topscored with 21 and held four catches (it broke Bismah Maroof’s record of three catches for Pakistan in WT20Is) on a day when Pakistan’s sloppy catching undermined some fine spells from the spinners.
Tight bowling
Eight catches were dropped, including three in the final over from Nida Dar, allowing New Zealand to huff and puff to 110/6. Needing to win in 10.4 overs to qualify for the semis, Pakistan were set back by the loss of a clump of wickets in the powerplay, and they meandered to 56 all out — the second-lowest total in World Cup history.
Barring opener Muneeba Ali (11) and Sana, the rest of the Pakistani batters floundered against the tight bowling by the Kiwi spinners. Leg spinner Amelia Kerr came away with three wickets, while off-spinner Eden Carson struck two vital blows to win the Player of the Match award.
New Zealand opted to bat first and got off to a fine with openers Suzie Bates (28 off 29 balls) and Georgia Plimmer (17 off 14) adding 39 in the powerplay. Three runs later, Plimmer fell, and the Kiwis lost their way as Pakistani spinners choked the batters.
Sadia Iqbal, Nashra Sandhu, Omaima Sohail and Nida Dar gave very little away, and if the fielders had hung on to the catches, the Kiwis would have been in a pickle. Brooke Halliday struck a couple of lusty blows and added 38 with skipper Sophie Devine (19) to keep the Kiwis afloat. In the end, 110 was good enough.
Pakistan captain Sana admitted that they have to improve their batting and fielding. “We were not up to the mark. I think our seniors should step up in these kinds of matches. As a bowling unit, we were up to the mark, but we need to improve our batting. Otherwise, we cannot survive in women’s cricket.”
Brief scores: New Zealand: 110/6 in 20 overs (Suzie Bates 28, Brooke Halliday 22) beat Pakistan: 56 all out in 11.4 overs (Fatima Sana 21, Amelia Kerr 3-14), Eden Carson 2-7) by 54 runs.
Player of the Match: Eden Carson
