ICC Women’s T20 World Cup Final: New Zealand Women clinched their first-ever title of the ICC T20 World Cup decisively, defeating South Africa at Dubai International Stadium on Sunday.
The Kiwis posted a big total of 158/5, quite enough to defend as South Africa was restricted to 126/9 in the end as they won the ICC T20 Women’s World Cup 2024.
š CHAMPIONS š
New Zealand win their maiden Women's #T20WorldCup title š#WhateverItTakes #SAvNZ pic.twitter.com/DOfyWZgLUf---Advertisement---— ICC (@ICC) October 20, 2024
Bates And Devine’s Dream Accomplished
At 37 and 35 years of age, respectively, Suzie Bates and Sophie Devine are slowly nearing their conclusion as players, and all the hard work they put in is coming back in the form of victory in Dubai. As fireworks light up the sky, players from New Zealand rush to gather with Suzie Bates and Sophie Devine, inseparable in this victory moment. Having already declared, “We’re going to win this thing now,” after beating the West Indies, Devine justified his claim today.
From 11 straight defeats to come into the tournament, none of that mattered as those tears of joy flowed and players embraced each other in celebration. South Africa, though, still lives with the pain of shattered dreams.
Amelia Kerr Shines In The Final!
Amelia Kerr led the scoring for New Zealand with a solid 43 runs, supported by Suzie Bates’ 32 at the top and Brooke Halliday’s 38 later in the innings. Thanks to her brilliant all-round performance, Kerr gets “Player of the Match” award as well as the “Player of the Tournament”.
Most wickets (15) in a single Women's #T20WorldCup edition ā
— ICC (@ICC) October 20, 2024
135 runs with the bat ā
A tournament to remember for the @aramco POTT winner Melie Kerr š #WhateverItTakes pic.twitter.com/MZoY8mOVaQ
Halliday and Kerr built a vital 57-run partnership before Halliday was dismissed by Chloe Tryon. Kerr later fell to Mlaba, while Maddy Green and Izzy Gaze finished unbeaten on 12 and 3 runs, respectively.
What Players Expressed
Isabella Gaze
“It hasn’t sunk in yet; it’s incredible. I’m so happy for the team. Regarding the edge and review against Bosch, it was pretty clear, and I felt confident. I knew Soph (Devine) would support my judgment, and it worked out well. We have so much belief in this team. Although we weren’t on the best streak entering the tournament, we showcased our skills and backed ourselvesālook where we are now! This victory is for them (Devine and Bates); it’s their win, and we achieved it as a team. I hope it makes them proud.”
Rosemary Mair
“Honestly, it’s pretty unbelievable. Coming into the World Cup, all the odds were against us, and winning it feels surreal. The batters set a fantastic total for us to defend, and pulling back South Africa from over 6 to 10 was a special moment. We truly care for one another. Over the past 18 months, we’ve faced many lows but have stuck together. It’s especially rewarding for the veterans, having reached the last final 14 years ago; I’m proud of the old gals.”
Laura Wolvaardt (South African Skipper)
“We obviously had a really good semifinal. Focus was to reset. Not get too ahead of ourselves. Knew we had a quality opponent in New Zealand to go up against. Didn’t play our best cricket tonight. They really came at us hard in the powerplay. At first we thought we could ride the wave a bit with a few wickets here and there. But they just kept going. Probably let them score a bit too many. I don’t know (lessons?). Will have to have a good reflection on what really happened”.
“Still fresh right now. Were backing ourselves at the halfway stage. They really put the squeeze after the powerplay. Very exciting. Have some really experienced players like Marizanne Kapp. Have some youngsters on the bench as well who didn’t get an opportunity this WC. Really big thank you to our management. The work they put in behind the scenes isn’t noticed. The hours and hours they put to get us ready to play is something we are really appreciative of and they don’t get the recognition for. Also just to the families who flew up. Lots of families flew up last night. It was a big mission to get visas. But most of them managed to be here. And to CSA and ICC for their support.”
Sophie Devine (New Zealand Skipper)
“I think once I get my hands on that trophy… I let myself dream last night about what it would feel like to hold it. I didnāt want to get too ahead of myself, but itās hard to express what this means, not just for me but for this entire group and for New Zealand Cricket. Itās been a long wait for this moment”.
“Whatās great about this team is that we’ve known our goals for the past 18 months. While the results havenāt favored us, weāve been progressing in the right direction. We faced the two best teams in the world for 15 games straight; it was a steep learning curve, but we kept moving forward”.
“Absolutely, we wanted momentum, and despite coming off 10 losses in a row, everyone starts fresh at the World Cup. Suzie’s achievement of becoming the most capped player in women’s cricket is incredible; her aggressive and fearless play sets the tone for the team”.
“Having her in the lineup is invaluable everyone knows how special she is to me. Iāve said it before: she’s the kind of person you want on your team”.
“As for me, I’m not stepping down from captaincy; Iāve changed my mind on that. Brooke was fantastic, hitting the gaps effectively. Weāve all recognized the effort and energy everyone has put in”.
“Amelia is truly a once-in-a-generation player; Iām pretty sure she canāt feel her legs right now! I want to thank Laura and the South African side; they were outstanding, especially in their semi-final against Australia. And I think Iām getting heckled now!” (The crowd roars and grows restless.)
Finally, New Zealand got what they deserved and finally, they can proudly say that they are “World Champions!”. On The other hand, South Africa showed courage and played extremely well throughout the tournament and reached the final once again.
The tournament ends with a new champion, let’s see what comes next in the next edition (2026).
Also Read: IND VS NZ: Washington Sundar Joins India Squad For Remaining Tests Against New Zealand
