New Zealand Women are set to face off against Australia Women in the third and final T20I of the three-match series on Wednesday, March 26 at Sky Stadium in Wellington. With the visitors having already sealed the series 2-0, the hosts will be playing for pride as they aim to avoid a whitewash.
The White Ferns suffered a crushing 82-run defeat in the second T20I. After opting to bowl first, their bowlers struggled to contain the Aussie batting line-up, allowing them to post a colossal 204/3. In reply, only Amelia Kerr offered some resistance with a fighting 40 but the rest of the batting unit faltered as New Zealand were bowled out for 122.
For Australia, it was a near-perfect performance. Beth Mooney starred with the bat, scoring a fluent 70 off 42 while Annabel Sutherland (4 wickets) and Alana King (3 wickets) dismantled the New Zealand batting order with clinical precision. They will to continue their dominance and complete a clean sweep.
Ahead of the NZ-W vs AUS-W 3rd T20I, here’s a look at Wellington weather report and Sky Stadium Pitch Report.
According to AccuWeather, it looks like the weather for the NZW vs AUSW 3rd T20I on March 26 is playing ball. It's a pleasant 20°C in the afternoon so players and fans are in for a comfortable outing. It’s partly sunny with just 2% chance of rain, so don’t worry about the match getting interrupted.
The wind is blowing from the west at 13 km/h with gusts reaching up to 22 km/h which might assist the swing bowlers a little early on. Humidity’s at 70% so the ball might grip a bit for the spinners too.
The cloud cover is just 22%, which means a good bit of sunshine and a fast outfield. Dew point’s sitting at 14°C, so not much dew expected in the afternoon. Visibility’s clear at 9 km, perfect for some clean catching and aerial shots.
Sky Stadium Stats And Records In Women's T20Is
Criterion
Data
Matches Played
6
Matches Won Batting 1st
3
Matches Won Batting 2nd
3
Average 1st Innings Score
119.67
Average 2nd Innings Score
101.5
Is Sky Stadium’s Pitch Batting Or Bowling Friendly?
The Sky Stadium has hosted six Women's T20 Internationals so far and it has got a bit of everything. The average first innings score here is 119.7 which suggests it’s not exactly a batting track. That said, teams batting first and second have both won three matches each.
The average runs per over here in the first innings is 6.00 which means there's help for the bowlers. Batters need to dig and work hard for their runs. Spinners can play a role too, especially with the wind helping drift and loop.
The surface tends to remain the same as the game progresses. Expect a good contest between bat and ball, but chasing teams will surely have an upper hand as they will know how the track behaves.