The Crux

Smriti Mandhana continued her imperious run of form that saw her rack up her 8th 50 plus score in her last ten innings while the Indian bowlers continued their dominant display to help the Women in Blue close out the 3-match series as they defeated the White Ferns' by nine wickets to take an unassailable 2-0 lead in the series.

Just like their male counterparts, the Indian Women followed the similar template to success- picking up early wickets with seam and swing while the troika of spinners applied the choke in the middle overs.

The win was set-up by the bowlers. after, Raj had decided to bowl first after winning the toss. Jhulan Goswami gave India a perfect start when she claimed the prize wicket of Suzie Bates for a duck while Shikha Pandey knocked over Sophie Devine leaving the White Ferns' reeling at 2-8. Skipper Amy Satterthwaite [71] led the fightback, first adding 25 for the third wicket with Down after Bist and Yadav had reduced the White Ferns' to 5-62. Satterthwaite and Kasperek [21] stitched a 58-run stand before Poonam Yadav snared the prize scalp of former for 71.

Post the dismissal of Satterthwaite, the White Ferns' could only bat for 11.2 overs as they lost their last four wickets for 41 to get bowled out for 161 in 44.2 overs. While the spinners- Ekta Bist [2-14], Deepti Sharma [2-51] and Poonam Yadav [2-38], shared two wickets apiece, Jhulan Goswami was the pick of the bowlers, ending with figures of 3-23.

Chasing 162, India lost two quick wickets in Rodriques [0] and Deepti Sharma [8], but Mandhana, who dazzled with an 83-ball 90 and skipper Raj, who scored a sedate 111-ball 63, stitched a 151-run stand for the third wicket to hand the Women in Blue a nine-wicket win and also an unassailable 2-0 lead in the 3-match series.

Brief Scores:-

New Zealand Women [161, Amy Satterthwaite 71, Jhulan Goswami 3-23] lost to India Women [2-166, Mandhana 90*, Raj 63*, Lea Tahuhu 1-16] by eight wickets