IND vs NZ, ICC Women's T20 World Cup: Kiwis Restrict India To 133-8 At Melbourne

Batting first India set New Zealand a 134-run target in their group encounter of the ICC Women's T20 World Cup being played at the Junction Oval at Melbourne

New Delhi: India set New Zealand a 134-run target in their ICC World Cup T20 group fixture being played at the Junction Oval in Melbourne. After put into bat first by Kiwis skipper Sophie Devine , India did not get off to the best possible starts as they lost opener Smriti Mandhana early as seamer Lea Tahuru dismissed her for 11. In-form teenage batsman Shafali Verma then stitched a handy partnership with Tanya Bhatia to help India post 49 inside the powerplays. Shafali did most of the damage early on with some lust boundary hitting. Against the run of play, Rosemary Mair got rid of Taniya Bhatia to get the Kiwis back into the game. Jemimah Rodrigues did not last long as Mair struck again in quick succession to dismiss her for 10.

India finish on 133/8.

Their bowlers have been excellent so far this #T20WorldCup – can they defend this? #INDvNZ | SCORE ???? https://t.co/1cVlAeVAym pic.twitter.com/ryYJGeIP4q — T20 World Cup (@T20WorldCup) February 27, 2020

Skipper Harmanpreet Kaur's poor run with the bat continued as she went back to the pavilion scoring just 1. India were in dire straits when Kerr trapped the experienced Veda Krishnamurthy leg before wicket for 6. Tailenders Shikha Pandey and Radha Yadav helped India reach a respectable 133-8 total. Shafali Verma was India's top scorer with a breezy 46 runs off just 34 deliveries, while Tanya Bhatia chipped in with a handy 23-run knock. Playing Eleven New Zealand Women (Playing XI): Sophie Devine(c), Rachel Priest(w), Suzie Bates, Maddy Green, Katey Martin, Amelia Kerr, Hayley Jensen, Anna Peterson, Leigh Kasperek, Lea Tahuhu, Rosemary Mair India Women (Playing XI): Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma, Taniya Bhatia(w), Jemimah Rodrigues, Harmanpreet Kaur(c), Deepti Sharma, Veda Krishnamurthy, Shikha Pandey, Radha Yadav, Poonam Yadav, Rajeshwari Gayakwad