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Ruthless New Zealand annihilates Sri Lanka to keep Semi Final hope alive

image-lebtyz09Suzie Bates and Amelia Kerr (Source: Twitter)

Suzie Bates, Amelia Kerr's batting effort, followed by a demolition work by the bowlers helped New Zealand beat Sri Lanka by 102 runs in Match 17 of the ongoing ICC Women's T20 World Cup at Boland Park in Paarl.

Bates, Kerr half centuries propels New Zealand to 162

After opting to bat first, New Zealand Women got off to a great start. Bernadine Bezuidenhout did the major damage in the powerplay, scoring 32 off 20, before getting out just before the end of the sixth over.

Suzie Bates, who was playing second fiddle to Bernadine, had a slow start at the other end. Amelia Kerr, at three, joined hands with Bates and the pair just went on to pile up runs in the middle overs. Sri Lankan were sloppy on the field, dropping a few catches and both the set batters went on to complete their respective half centuries.

The partnership for the second wicket was worth 110 runs, helping New Zealand to post a well above-par total 162 for three at the end of twenty overs.

Chasing 163, Sri Lanka Women never got going with the bat as New Zealand bowlers proved to be way stronger in these conditions for them. Except the first wicket partnership between Harshita Madavi and Chamari Athapaththu, Sri Lanka never looked to be in this chase.

Amelia Kerr continued to be the star of the match as she grabbed two wickets with the ball, after bossing with the bat, earlier in the first innings. 

Fran Jonas and Eden Carson also spun through the Sri Lankan batting, taking one wicket each. Sri Lanka got wrapped up for just 60 with more than four overs remaining.

This win for New Zealand will keep them alive in the tournament but will not guarantee a spot in the knockout stage until South Africa loses to Bangladesh in the last Group fixture. If South Africa wins, they will be through to the Semi Final, while New Zealand will need a helping hand from Bangladesh to get them through to the knockout stage by beating the hosts in the last fixture of the Group stage.

Brief scores:

New Zealand Women: 162/3 (20)

Amelia Kerr 66 (48), Suzie Bates 56 (49);
Inoka Ranaweera 1-27 (4), Achini Kulasuriya 1-14 (2.1)

Sri Lanka Women: 60/10 (15.5)

Chamari Athapaththu 19 (21), Malsha Shehani 10 (13);
Amelia Kerr 2-7 (2.5), Lea Tahuhu 2-12 (4)

New Zealand Women won by 102 runs