After defeating the hosts England by a massive eight wickets on Sunday at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Edgbaston, New Zealand won the bronze medal. In their final Group B encounter against England on Thursday, New Zealand could only muster a humiliating score of 71-9.
However, New Zealand came through on Sunday, less than 24 hours after both teams were eliminated in the semi-finals, limiting England to 110-9 and then successfully chasing down the mark with eight wickets in hand and 49 balls left.
Danni Wyatt and Alice Capsey were cheaply dismissed from the game with the score at 10-2, giving England's decision to bat first a less than stellar start. For the remainder of Powerplay, Captain Nat Sciver and Sophia Dunkley held down a 34-run stand.
However, the removal of Nat for 27 by the New Zealand captain Sophie Devine caused England to start to lose ground, leaving them with no chance of recovery. While New Zealand continued their impressive bowling performance, Sophia, Maia Bouchier, and Katherine Brunt fell without making much of an impact.
Then, England's Amy Jones and Sophie Ecclestone would contribute some crucial runs, forming a 37-run partnership and guaranteeing that the hosts had over 100 total runs on the board. As England reached 110-9 in 20 overs, Ecclestone added 18 and Jones added 26.
Hayley Jensen, representing New Zealand, ended with a score of 3–24, eliminating Danni, Amy, and Issy Wong. Amelia Kerr (1-22) and Hannah Rowe (1-13) both got wickets, with Sophie taking 2-11.
Then, Sophie and Suzie Bates, who was her opening partner, collaborated for an opening stand of 54 runs through their powerful hits, making the outcome certain. Suzie had carried out her role in the power play before finally leaving for 20 off Nat. Georgia Plimmer, a rookie, couldn't stay long after Freya Kemp knocked her out for four.
However, Sophie and Amelia made sure that New Zealand didn't have any more setbacks and led the team to a decisive victory and a bronze medal. Sophie would go on to score an unbeaten 51 off 40 balls and, fittingly, get the winning single despite dropping New Zealand's catch, leaving England to lament their failings and missing out on a podium finish at home.
Brief Scores: England 110-9 in 20 overs (Nat Sciver 27, Amy Jones 26; Hayley Jensen 3-24, Sophie Devine 2-11) lost to New Zealand 111-2 in 11.5 overs (Sophie Devine 51 not out, Amelia Kerr 21 not out, Nat Sciver 1-8, Freya Kemp 1-17) by eight wickets