It was New Zealand’s third victory after losing the previous two Twenty20 finals in 2009 and 2010.
New Zealand, who batted first, had an astonishing score of 158 for 5. Opener Susie Bates (31 off 32) set the tone from the start, with Amelia Kerr (38 off 43) and Brooke Halliday (28 off 38) creating a vital 57 run partnership in the middle overs. Maddy Green added 12 from the final over to lead New Zealand to an astonishing total.
South Africa’s opener Laura Wolvaardt (33 years old) and Tazmin Blitz (17 years old), the two top scorers of the tournament, attacked from the start and scored 51 runs for the first wicket.
However, New Zealand spinners took control in the middle overs. Kerr, Fran Jonas and Eden Carson all took top-order wickets and left South Africa facing a daunting task of 96 for 5 with 63 of the last 30 balls required. The White Ferns’ tight bowling and steady hands in the field did not give them any attention.
Advertise with NZME.Kerr put in a great performance in his Player of the Match performance, finishing with 3 wins and 24 draws, helping to create a big total despite suffering from cramps after a 73-minute stay at the crease. . She was also selected as player of the tournament.
South Africa finished with 126 for 9 as pace bowler Rosemary Mair took the late wickets and finished with 3 wins and 25 losses.
The White Ferns finished second in Group A behind three-time defending champions Australia, who were eliminated by South Africa in the semi-finals. In 2010, New Zealand defeated Pakistan in the final group match to advance to the finals, and then defeated West Indies in a tight eight-run contest to advance to the finals for the first time.
The amazing thing is that New Zealand didn’t need to beat either Australia or England to win the title, but that’s the World Cup. But that’s the beauty of knockout tournaments.
“It’s unbelievable to be honest,” Mair told Sky Sports. “Coming into the tournament, all the odds were against us, so for the group to bounce back like it did now in the tournament is really incredible.
“We’ve been down a lot over the past 18 months, but we’ve stuck by each other and continued to work hard for each other, so it’s been really good.”
Susie Bates celebrates catching the ball after defeating South Africa in the Twenty20 World Cup final. Photo/Getty Images
Bates and captain Sophie Devine played in the last final, which was lost to England at Lord’s in 2009, and the following year in the West Indies against Australia, where Devine almost put New Zealand ahead with the final over.
As two great careers for their country draw to a close, it seems fitting that they can finally be called world champions.
“I’m really shocked. Little things went wrong in this tournament, but we played with real pride. No matter what happened today, I was very proud of our group and we It’s unbelievable that we won,” Bates told Sky Sports.
“This means everything to us. We’ve been playing team sports for a long time. When you play team sports, you want to be world champions, but we’ve been fighting to get to the top. We had some last-minute chances at first, but after that we had very few chances. She (Devine) was very calm leading this team. Believe me, there were some dark times when we were the only ones there in that cabin, just when we weren’t winning for this World Cup. We doubted ourselves as leaders, but Ben (coach Ben Sawyer) continued to support us, so that’s really special.”
Advertise with NZME.
Source link Read more related news on Gnews
