Mandhana record fifty in vain as New Zealand win T20I opener

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When Mandhana and Jemimah Rodrigues added 58 runs in the Powerplay, India seemed well on course to chase down the target of 160 in Wellington on Wednesday, 6 February. However, pacer Lea Tahuhu (3/20), and spinners Leigh Kasperek (2/25) and Amelia Kerr (2/28) fought back, and with the fielders holding on to the chances they were offered, the hosts pulled off a 23-run win.

Hannah Rowe's catch off Mandhana proved to be the game-changer, as India collapsed from 102/1 to 136 all out after that.

A googly from Kerr in the 12th over did the trick. Rowe completed a good one-handed catch leaping high and backwards to send the Indian opener back for 58 off 34 balls. Rodrigues (39 off 33) then nicked a short and wide delivery from Tahuhu the next over, and with both set batters back in the hut, New Zealand were back in the game.

The middle order offered no resistance, and when captain Harmanpreet Kaur was stumped trying to charge down the ground, India's best hopes disappeared. As they had done in the ICC Women's World T20 2018, the team had rested the experienced Mithali Raj while giving youngsters a shot.

New Zealand's total had been set up by Sophie Devine. After the hosts were put in, Devine led the charge in partnerships of 36 with debutant Caitlin Gurrey (15) and 69 with Amy Satterthwaite (33 off 27 balls). She was especially strong down the ground and over cover.

It helped take the pressure off after the early wicket of Suzie Bates. The dangerous Bates was done in by pace off the ball from Radha Yadav, with the batter caught off a skyer as she failed to middle one.

Devine finally fell in the 16th over for 62 off 48 balls, which included two sixes. Having taken a couple of fours off pace bowler Arundhati Reddy, she was caught by Deepti Sharma, who did well to hold on to the ball while avoiding a collision.

With Satterthwaite caught in the deep the very next over, India threatened to pull things back. But two sixes in the last over from Katey Martin, who added an unbroken 38 with Frances Mackay, helped New Zealand finish well.

Mackay was, however, involved in a mid-pitch tumble with Martin. And when she slipped while opening the bowling, it resulted in an ankle injury that kept her off the field for the rest of the game.

With Mandhana going great guns – the half-century came with a well-struck leg-side six, one of three for her on the day – it seemed New Zealand would miss Mackay's bowling, but the rest of the line-up pulled it off.