New Zealand women roar to glorious T20 World Cup win
New Zealand’s ecstatic women cricketers have sealed a glorious weekend of sport for their country by lifting the T20 World Cup for the first time in Dubai, with Amelia Kerr taking pride of place as their hobbling matchwinner.
Kerr, brilliant with a top-scoring knock of 43 and then three key wickets while clearly struggling with cramp, starred as the White Ferns beat Australia’s semi-final conquerors comprehensively by 32 runs on Sunday.
It completed a fantastic weekend for New Zealand sport, with the triumph coming hours after their men’s cricket team earned their first Test triumph in India for 36 years and the day after their sailors had successfully defended their America’s Cup title off Barcelona.
Then an hour after Hayden Wilde had also won the World Triathlon Championship grand final in Torremolinos, Sophie Devine’s side were left celebrating a terrific victory against the team who had comprehensively ended Australia’s run of four global white-ball triumphs in the last-four.
New Zealand, put in to bat by South African skipper Laura Wolvaardt, amassed a daunting 5-158 off their 20 overs at Dubai International Cricket Stadium with Kerr smacking 43 off 38 balls, Brooke Halliday 38 off 28 deliveries and veteran opener Suzie Bates 32 in 31.
After the Proteas started their chase brightly with a half-century opening stand between Wolvaardt and Tazmin Brits in less than seven overs, New Zealand took control with Kerr grabbing the crucial wicket of Wolvaardt (33 off 27) and Anneke Bosch, Australia’s tormentor, in the same 10th over.
With Kerr ending up with 3-24 off her four overs and Rosemary Mair grabbing 3-25 off her full stint, the South African chase simply crumbled as they limped to 9-126, falling short in a second successive final after their loss to Australia in Cape Town last year.
For Australia, the dethroned six-time champions, it was just a case of what might have been as they recalled their victory over New Zealand from 12 days earlier in Sharjah when they crushed Devine’s side by 60 runs.
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