The talk that fuelled White Ferns' pace brigade at CWC25
Lea Tahuhu admitted New Zealand's quicks were on a mission to prove seam bowling isn't redundant on the World Cup's sub-continental spin-friendly pitches.
Motivation can come in all shapes and sizes. And New Zealand certainly weren't short of it in their ICC Women's Cricket World Cup showdown with Bangladesh.
In what was billed as a must-win for the White Ferns, having dropped their opening two games of the tournament, they certainly came to play in Guwahati, clinching a 100-run victory that keeps their World Cup dreams alive and well.
And incentives got more specific for some of New Zealand's players. In what has been a tournament defined mostly by slow bowling and tough run-scoring decks, the bulk of the White Ferns' wicket-taking production came via their seamers, highlighted by three dismissals to each of Jess Kerr (3/21 off eight overs) and Lea Tahuhu (3/22 off six overs).
New Zealand off the mark with big win | Match Highlights | CWC25
The White Ferns register a comprehensive win over Bangladesh to win their first game at the ICC Women's Cricket World Cup 2025.
Tahuhu went as far as to say post-game that their quicks didn't enjoy their craft going underappreciated.
"As pace bowlers, we probably took that a little bit personally," she told media.
"Obviously we had a look at that as well and saw that spin was really dominant (in Guwahati). But I think it was just about keeping really tight lines out there, letting the wicket do the work. I think it actually just skidded on quite nicely, especially bowling second, we knew that we might get a little bit skiddier, a little bit of dew there. If you put the ball on the stumps, it gave some opportunities there.
"Having Rosemary Mair (2/20 off six overs) come back in (from injury), I think she was amazing in that power play and sort of set the tone. And I think Jess Kerr really hit her lines and lengths today as well. And yeah, I suppose we've always been more known for our pace bowling and you take pride in being able to adapt to different conditions, different countries. You've got to be able to bowl everywhere."
Tahuhu looks ahead after New Zealand win | Post-match Press Conference | CWC25
New Zealand pacer Lea Tahuhu sees momentum building for the White Ferns at the ICC Women's Cricket World Cup
Team depth has been a hot button topic at the tournament so far, with an abnormal amount of batting production coming from down the order when bowling attacks begin to get stretched. And that was the case yet again, as the White Ferns chased an even bigger victory to assist with their net run rate.
"We had them six down early, but I think the way we've seen this entire tournament go, there's been a few batting collapses, but it's been hard to get those last three or four wickets," Tahuhu continued.
"And it proved no different there today. (Their) No.7 and No.8 (in the batting lineup) played a really good role for them and we just had to stay patient. I think if you go searching for wickets in these conditions, you get into a little bit of trouble."
New Zealand, though, will take the win and shift focus to a two-match phase in Colombo that potentially elevates them right back into semi-finals contention.
"I think it gives us an opportunity to sort of kick start our tournament," said Tahuhu.
"We couldn't afford to be 0-3 at the start of a World Cup. You have to put a couple of losses early behind you knowing that you've got games coming thick and fast. So, we've had some really good discussions. We've had some really good trainings over the last couple of days and it was nice to have to go out there and put a bit of a performance together.
"I think in four days’ time we're at it again. So, we'll take a lot of learnings from this game. Really positive obviously getting that win. There' (are) certainly areas that we'll still be looking at that we'll be debriefing and trying to get better going into the next couple of games over in Sri Lanka."
New Zealand will take on Sri Lanka on Tuesday and then Pakistan on Saturday.
