The New Zealand women’s cricket team won their match against Pakistan in the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup on Saturday. The women’s team of New Zealand defeated Pakistan by 78 runs.
Nida Dar of Pakistan scored a remarkable fifty points, but the entire team fell short of the New Zealand squad’s aim of 265 points.
As the hosts attempted to finish their campaign on a strong note, Suzie Bates produced her 12th ODI century and became the first New Zealand batter (and fourth overall) to achieve 5,000 runs in the format. New Zealand defeated Pakistan 266 in front of a raucous Christchurch crowd in what will be both teams’ final participation at the competition.
This was Bates’ second score of 50 or more in the competition, following an unbeaten 79 against Bangladesh, which was possibly her most famous knock. When she was dismissed in the 43rd over, she walked out to a standing ovation from the crowd, fueling talk that Bates, who turns 35 later this year, may retire from cricket in the near future.
Though Bates’ century was the highlight of the innings, Pakistan would be delighted with how they kept the game under control. Following Bates’ strong start, their spinners, headed by Nida Dar, held New Zealand quiet until a lower-order collapse put them in danger of scoring less than 250 runs. They batted out their 50 overs and scored a difficult total thanks to Katey Martin’s 30 from 26 balls.
