The 90th delivery of the Bangladesh innings – bowled by leg-spinner Amelia Kerr – took the outside edge of Nahida Akter’s bat, bisecting the wicketkeeper and slip for a fortuitous four. The ball didn’t go where the batter intended, but it was the first boundary off the bat, in the second innings.
Bangladesh came into the game after beating Pakistan and giving England an almighty scare. They would have fancied their chances against a New Zealand side that had lost their first two games, especially on a Guwahati surface with help for the spinners.
But on Friday, once the White Ferns reached 227/9, the lack of batting firepower in the Bangladesh ranks ensured it was way out of their reach as they were bowled out for 127 in 39.5 overs to give the Sophie Devine-led side their first win of the competition.
Bangladesh’s highest successful chase in ODIs is 236. In their second match against England, they had given indications that batting wasn’t going to be their strongest suit as they crawled their way to 178.
On Friday, that the extras (30) were the second-biggest contributor to the Bangladesh score, behind Fahima Khatun’s 34, underscored their plight. In fact, at one stage, it seemed like they were aiming to get to the target on the back of wides, as the New Zealand bowlers conceded 21 of them.
As was the case for the majority of the innings against England, the Bangladesh batters hardly did anything to upset the bowlers as they settled into their preferred line and length.
There were only eight boundaries in almost 40 overs of batting, and all of them came when the fate of the match had been sealed.
New Zealand recover after early jitters
The final victory margin was comprehensive, but it didn’t come without initial jitters. New Zealand showed some nerves early in their innings. Their key batter, Suzie Bates, who had started the tournament with two ducks, had to get an on-field LBW decision overturned to avoid an unwanted hat-trick.
Story continues below this ad
But nevertheless, they found themselves 38/3 in the 11th over, and it again fell on skipper Sophie Devine – the top run-scorer in the tournament – and Brooke Halliday. The captain continued her prolific form with 63 off 85 deliveries. It wasn’t one of her most fluent innings, and she struggled physically, as well, in the hot and humid conditions.
It was Halliday’s 69 that provided most of the impetus in their 112-run fourth-wicket stand, the decisive phase of the game. The left-handed Halliday showed she had put the preparatory stint in Chennai to good use as she used the sweep shot frequently.
After her dismissal, Devine, who had to take jellybeans to continue batting in the middle, managed a couple of big hits before perishing. The last seven overs brought 62 runs, and a total that made New Zealand favourites.
Bangladesh find batting tough again
Thursday’s India-South Africa thriller at Visakhapatnam demonstrated the advent of the power game in women’s cricket, but Bangladesh are some way away from emulating those standards. They were 10/1 after six overs and 22/3 after the first Powerplay. 33/6 after 14 overs meant the game was over as a contest, and the only question was the margin of victory and the net run rate boost that New Zealand would get. None of the Bangladesh top five batters reached double figures – in fact, only three of their 11 did.
Their pace bowler, Marufa Akter – though she had a forgettable outing on Friday – has impressed with her pace, passion, and skill, and they have an array of spinners that can tie batters up in helpful conditions.
Story continues below this ad
It’s the batting where they are way off the pace, and even on a spin-friendly surface, it was the New Zealand seamers Rosemary Mair (2/20), Jess Kerr (3/21), and Lea Tahuhu (3/22) who kept them on a tight leash.
After opening their account on Friday, New Zealand go to Colombo next to face co-hosts Sri Lanka on Tuesday. Bangladesh travel to Visakhapatnam to take on South Africa a day earlier.
Brief scores: New Zealand 227/9 in 50 overs (Brooke Halliday 69, Sophie Devine 63; Rabeya Khan 3/30) beat Bangladesh 127 all out in 39.5 overs (Fahima Khatun 34; Jess Kerr 3/21, Lea Tahuhu 3/22) by 100 runs.
