White Ferns begin with crucial clash against India

ready for the challenge of taking on India in such a crucial match first up.

‘‘It’s always an interesting one when you haven’t played a team for a while,’’ she said.

‘‘Obviously their team’s changed a little bit, but likewise ours will have as well. Hopefully, having some players they haven’t seen much of will put us in a good position.’’

The White Ferns also have Pakistan and Ireland in their group, two teams they should expect to beat comfortably – though those matches could mean nothing if they don’t win at least one of their first two. England, the West Indies and South Africa are the threats in the other group.

Spin is expected to play a big role in the Caribbean, much like it did in India two years ago, where the White Ferns made the most of the conditions to upset Australia in the group stage, only to lose to the eventual champions, the West Indies, in the semifinals.

Coach Haidee Tiffen was confident her side had the tools to succeed.

‘‘We’ve got high-quality spinners in the likes of Amelia Kerr and Leigh Kasperek who haven’t played a lot of T20 cricket but have been successful. To go to conditions like this that will suit them, hopefully they will continue that form.

‘‘Amy bowls herself, we’ve got Anna Peterson, Maddy Green can even bowl a bit of spin, and Jess Watkin, the youngster, so we’ve got a really good range of options and then the pace as well.