ICC T20 World Cup 2023: Team Preview – New Zealand

The New Zealand team is all prepared and set to take on the stage with an experienced team for the T20 World Cup 2023. They come to the tournament after playing a great home series against Bangladesh. They thrashed them and won the series 3-0. They also won the lone ODI, which was played. They continued their form in their first world cup warm-up against West Indies by defeating them by 32 runs. Maddy Green top scored with 47 runs, and Amelia Kerr was the pick of the bowlers as she gave away just 20 runs with three wickets in her four overs.

New Zealand has been placed in group A with the likes of Australia, Bangladesh, South Africa, and Sri Lanka. They are led by their swashbuckling opener, Sophie Devine, who is in fine form, along with the magical Lea Tahuhu, who is leading their bowling attack. The New Zealand board has done a good job in getting Morne Morkel on board as their tour coach. He will also be donning the role of bowling coach and general coaching support. The experience and expertise of Morne will be very useful for the team, especially when playing in South Africa, where he trained and played for most of his cricketing career.  

What could we expect?

We can expect New Zealand to be a dominant force in this World cup. They have a well-experienced squad with players who can single-handedly turn the favour of the game. They are having a well-disciplined bowling lineup that can choke the opponent’s batting line-up and restrict them to a low score. Their batting also has been spot on, with everyone stepping up at crucial times. Though the opening is steady, the middle order seems dangerous and is in fine form.

Players to watch out for in New Zealand: 

Sophie Devine: 

As the leading scorer for New Zealand at the World Cup in 2022, captain Devine scored 309 runs from her seven innings of play, scoring at an impressive strike rate of 91.42 and averaging 44.14. She played 115 T20Is for New Zealand, scoring 2,950 runs at a respectable strike rate of 122.72, and has long served the White Ferns.

The success of Devine’s team will be heavily influenced by her performances. In her recent performance, she has struck an undefeated 42 runs against the Bangladesh Women and will look to carry forward the same momentum in the World Cup Championship.

Maddy Green: 

In 74 T20 games, she has scored over 741 runs at an average of 15.52 and a striking rate of 97.50. In the T20I series against Bangladesh, she scored 84 runs at a strike rate of 137.7 over three games. With her powerful clearing capabilities and being a handy fielder, she is definitely a player to watch out for in the White Ferns squad.

In their first warm-up match against West Indies, she scored an undefeated 47 runs off 37 balls and will continue to carry forward the same momentum for the rest of the World Cup campaign.

Amelia Kerr:

Taking ten wickets from six matches, Amelia Kerr was one of the leading wicket-takers for the White Ferns in the World Cup 2017 when she was just 17 years old. She has represented New Zealand in 55 T20 matches, where she has scored 544 runs with a strike rate of 107.5, and with regard to bowling figures, she was a consistent contributor to the team with 52 wickets in 55 matches and a good economy of just 5.87.

In their recent warmup matches, though they suffered a defeat against England, Kerr gave away just 24 runs in four overs with two wickets and scored a quickfire 24 runs. She also marked a three-wicket figure against the West Indies women by giving away just 20 runs in her four overs.

Suzie Bates:

Being the most experienced player for her side, Suzie Bates has always been one of the leading run scorers for her team in the T20s. She has represented her team in 139 T20 matches and scored 3683 runs averaging at 30. She has also taken 55 wickets with an economy of 6.60.

She has been in good touch in the recent warmup games, where she scored more than 30 runs in both contests. She will look to carry over the same momentum into the group-stage matches for the World Cup Championship.

New Zealand Squad: 

Sophie Devine (c), Suzie Bates, Bernadine Bezuidenhout (wk), Eden Carson, Lauren Down, Maddy Green, Brooke Halliday, Hayley Jensen, Fran Jonas, Melie Kerr, Jess Kerr, Molly Penfold, Georgia Plimmer, Hannah Rowe, Lea Tahuhu

Fixtures: 

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