Hamilton: After making a winning start to their campaign in the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup with a 107-run win over Pakistan, India will be seeking middle-order gains when they face New Zealand at Seddon Park.
The Mithali Raj-led side know Sophie Devine & Co. very well, after all the two teams faced each other in five ODIs at Queenstown in February, where New Zealand won 4-1.
“I am happy we won the first game but a lot of things to work on. When you lose wickets in the middle order, it does put a lot of pressure.”
Mithali’s words after India’s big win over Pakistan conveyed a lot. Rarely after winning a match, the skipper of a side says about improvement points to be made in the same sentence.
New Zealand seemed to have got their campaign back on track. After suffering a surprise three-run loss to the West Indies, the White Ferns bounced back with a nine-wicket thrashing of Bangladesh in a rain-hit match.
With an exciting match against the West Indies, the giant killers of the tournament, coming on March 12, India will be hoping to get the gains they seek apart from the crucial two points against a New Zealand side who have been their familiar foes since February.
