White Ferns leave it very late
No Sophie Devine, no problem. The White Ferns, shorn of their skipper and best player on match morning, clawed one back against world champions Australia to secure a four-wicket victory in a Napier thriller yesterday.
With three needed off the final ball of the second women’s Twenty20 international, Maddy Green swung hard at Nicola Carey and the thick inside edge flew fine for four as New Zealand chased down their target of 130 and celebrated wildly in the dugout.
Having lost eight of their last nine T20 internationals to Australia, the Ferns roared back from defeat in Hamilton to set up a decider at Eden Park tomorrow, and halt a four-match home losing streak this year.
Missing an unwell Devine, allrounder Frankie Mackay stood up with a belligerent 46 off 39 at the top, then Green and Hannah Rowe finished the job.
When Australia’s star bowler Megan Schutt snared Brooke Halliday (1) and Amelia Kerr (36) in successive balls, the Ferns needed 21 off 12 and the pressure was right on at McLean Park.
Rowe was the cool head they needed, going 4, 2, 4, off Schutt’s final three balls to leave them needing nine off the last. Green’s sweetly hit cover driven four off the first ball was the tensionbreaker but Carey rallied to take it down to the final delivery.
Mackay played a big part with bat and ball despite being in increasing discomfort with a calf injury picked up in game one.
The White Ferns badly needed her after Hayley Jensen (3) missed out again, and stand-in skipper Amy Satterthwaite (6) chipped a soft catch to deep midwicket off Carey to make it 27-2.
Mackay and Kerr added 54 as running between the wickets became increasingly painful, and Mackay had to call on her power game.
She boomed two over the rope, the second fast and flat over midwicket before impressive 18-yearold debutant Darcie Brown got