New Zealand crush Ireland in Womens World T20

MOHALI: Suzie Bates’ swift 60-ball 82 and her 104-run partnership with Sophie Devine for the second wicket set the base for New Zealand Women’s massive 93-run win over Ireland Women in the World T20 match in Mohali.New Zealand got off to a blistering start after opting to bat, as opener Rachel Priest struck three fours in the first over before falling to medium-pacer Amy Kenealy in the second over.The wicket brought Bates and Devine together at the crease, and the pair built on the early momentum in their century stand. By the end of the Powerplay, New Zealand were 48 for one and except for a couple of quiet overs, the pair found the boundary with ease.Devine fell in the 15th over to Isobel Joyce, after a 34-ball 47, and Bates then propelled the score past 150.The New Zealand captain struck two successive sixes off Kim Garth in the penultimate over before falling for 82; her knock also included seven fours.She became the fourth player to score more than 2000 runs in women’s T20I cricket and is second on the list of highest run-getters with 2063 runs, ahead of Sarah Taylor and Stafanie Taylor.Ireland’s chase simply failed to get off the blocks. They lost two wickets within the first four overs for a score of 16 and by the tenth over had reached only 34 for 3.The required run rate was already more than 14 by that stage and it was only Joyce who showed some resistance with a 33-ball 28, the top score in an Ireland innings that eventually petered out to 84 for 5.Offspinner Leigh Kasperek had economical returns of 1-10 in her four overs while legspinner Erin Bermingham took 2 for 17.’