New Zealand clinch series after late Windies implosion

Windies let slip a wonderful opportunity to log their first win on what has been a disappointing tour of New Zealand, going down by one run in the third Twenty20 International at New Plymouth’s Pukekura Park on Tuesday.

Hayley Matthews (3/24) and Deandra Dottin (2/23) led a strong bowling performance to restrict New Zealand to 134/7 despite big contributions from Sophie Devine and Suzie Bates. After that, the batters chipped away at the target to start the last over with only five to get with six wickets in hand. But Anna Peterson did brilliantly to pick up two wickets, while Windies lost a third to a run out to end on 133/7.

That gave New Zealand, who had swept the three-match ICC Women's Championship one-day international series, an unbeatable 3-0 lead in the series of five T20Is.

Chasing 135 after their best bowling performance in the series, Windies didn’t start too well, losing Stafanie Taylor, the captain, Chedean Nation and Matthews to be 43/3 in seven overs. But Dottin, Merissa Aguilleira and Kycia Knight repaired the innings and kept them going smoothly.

Dottin, batting at No.4, put together a quick 30-run stand with Aguilleira for the fourth wicket to put Windies on course till she became Leigh Kasperek’s third victim, caught behind for 24 in 17 balls, with four fours.

It got even better for Windies after that as Aguilleira and Knight batted sensibly to swing the pendulum away from New Zealand. The two added 57 for the fifth wicket in just over seven overs, leaving Windies very much in front when the last over began.

And then things went out of gear. Knight was dismissed first ball by Peterson, caught by Devine, for a 21-ball 26. With five to get from five, Britney Cooper played a dot and then collected two, but was out stumped by Katey Martin off the fourth ball. Three from two, and Akeira Peters, trying to get Aguillera back on strike, was run out off the fifth ball. Unfortunately for Windies, Aguillera couldn’t put bat to ball with three to get from the last ball, and could only collect one leg-bye to leave Windies one short.

While Aguillera finished on 38* from 41 balls, Peterson returned 2/25 and Kasperek 3/31.

Earlier, it didn’t look like New Zealand would settle for a total as modest as they did, as Devine gave them a blazing start after Taylor asked them to bat.

Devine, who had an outstanding time in the one-day international series, scoring 108, 80 and 73* but a relatively quieter time in the first two T20Is with scores of 6 and 27, smashed 41 in 18 balls with three fours and three sixes in an opening stand of 52 with Bates, the captain. The partnership was broken in the sixth over with Matthews hitting Devine’s stumps, and Windies pulled things back after that as Matthews bowled Katey Martin (7) as well.

Bates, whose 234 runs in the ODI series has catapulted her to No.2 in the MRF Tyres ICC Women’s ODI Player Rankings for batters, had settled in by then, and stitched together small stands of 23 with Maddy Green (15) and 30 with Amy Satterthwaite (10) to keep the innings on track, but when Satterthwaite became Matthews’ third victim, the scoreboard read 115/4 in the 18th over.

There was no major push in the final overs, as Bates ended on an unbeaten 53-ball 52, with five fours, but Peterson (1), Natalie Dodd (1) and Kasperek (3) came and went without doing much.

In the end, it was enough for New Zealand to clinch the series and go into Thursday’s fourth T20I at the same venue armed with an unassailable lead.