White Ferns: ‘Some improvements to be made’
Third T20 international: White Ferns v England.
Where: Saxton Oval, Nelson
When: 1pm today.
Coverage: Live on TVNZ 1 and TVNZ+, live updates on Stuff from 12.30pm.
The White Ferns have to find winning form on Sunday to avoid another home T20I series defeat.
Losses in the first two games of the five-match series versus England have put added pressure on the hosts in Nelson, following a shock 2-1 series defeat to Pakistan earlier this season.
New Zealand coach Ben Sawyer admitted his side had missed opportunities to level the series at Saxton Oval on Friday in a 15-run defeat.
“I thought with the ball we started really well, obviously took wickets at regular intervals ... with the best teams in the world, we need to take wickets and do that regularly to slow the run-rate
“There's some improvements to be made in the back-end,” Sawyer said.
“Same with the bat - we started really well ... it's probably twice now that the middle's let us down a bit. We know that, the girls are trying really hard to fix it - it's just something we need to keep addressing. To chase 150 on a good wicket and a good outfield ... we've got to be able to do that.”
History
England and the White Ferns have now met in 32 T20Is stretching back to 2004. The Ferns have won just seven of those, and England 25. Last time they met in a series in New Zealand, England swept it 3-0 in Wellington in 2021.
Weather
The forecast looks promising for the full 40 overs to be contested. Sunday afternoon is expected to be partly cloudy, with the slight chance of a shower, and a high of 21 degrees.
Odds
After back-to-back losses, the White Ferns remain underdogs in Game 3, offering $2.45 for win, with the series leaders paying $1.51.
Squads
White Ferns: Sophie Devine (capt)
Suzie Bates, Melie Kerr, Bernadine Bezuidenhout, Eden Carson, Izzy Gaze, Maddy Green, Brooke Halliday, Fran Jonas, Jess Kerr, Rosemary Mair, Hannah Rowe, Lea Tahuhu.
England: Heather Knight (capt), Hollie Armitage*, Tammy Beaumont, Lauren Bell, Maia Bouchier, Alice Capsey+, Charlie Dean, Sophia Dunkley, Sophie Ecclestone+, Lauren Filer, Danielle Gibson, Sarah Glenn, Bess Heath, Amy Jones, Nat Sciver-Brunt+, Linsey Smith*, Danni Wyatt+ (*games 1-3 only; +games 4-5 only ).