Women’s T20 World Cup 2023: Australia thrash New Zealand by 97 runs in Paarl

Australia made an ominous commencement to their Women's T20 World Cup run by thrashing New Zealand by 97 runs.

Megan Schutt dismissed Suzie Bates and Sophie Devine for aureate ducks successful the archetypal implicit earlier spinner Ashleigh Gardner took 5-12.

Opener Alyssa Healy deed 55, skipper Meg Lanning a majestic 41 and Ellyse Perry 40 successful Australia's 173-9.

The world-class trio laid a platform, meaning Australia inactive reached their ample full contempt losing 5-19 successful the closing overs.

They leap consecutive to the apical of the Group A standings, supra Sri Lanka who bushed hosts South Africa connected Friday.

The immense borderline of New Zealand's decision severely dents their hopes and boosts the chances of the Proteas, fixed the harm inflicted connected the White Ferns' nett run-rate which volition abstracted teams who decorativeness level connected points.

England began their tourney with an impressive seven-wicket triumph implicit West Indies earlier connected Saturday.

• Australia's triumph implicit New Zealand arsenic it happened

Australia marque ascendant start

Australia person won 5 of the past six editions of this contention and, having won the Ashes, the 50-over World Cup and Commonwealth Games successful 2022, person go 1 of the ascendant teams successful satellite sport.

They suffered a daze nonaccomplishment to Ireland successful a warm-up crippled earlier this week but the emphatic borderline of this triumph squashed immoderate thought that they are thing but immense favourites successful South Africa.

Their batting line-up is fearsome. Their bowling is high-class and varied.

Megan Schutt began with 5 wides but bowled Suzie Bates, who tried an ambitious scoop disconnected her stumps, a shot aboriginal and past trapped Devine lbw. That each but ended the contention and afterwards a ruthless showing from each 7 bowlers utilized followed, Gardner stealing the headlines with her close off-spin and her archetypal planetary five-wicket haul.

With the bat, Australia mislaid opener Beth Mooney to a stunning leaping drawback by Eden Carson successful the archetypal implicit but afterwards Healy and Lanning recovered the boundaries astatine volition successful a ascendant basal of 70 from 54 balls.

Lanning was bowled by a googly from Kerr but Perry took connected the scoring, hitting 2 sixes successful her imperious 22-ball knock.

The interest for the remainder of the contention is Australia's batting has country for improvement. They looked connected people for an adjacent bigger full astatine 148-4 aft 16.2 overs earlier a descent of wickets which included a sloppy run-out and a succession of catches offered to heavy fielders by the little mediate order.

"Someone is going to person play precise good to bushed Australia," erstwhile England spinner Alex Hartley said.

"They did amusement flimsy weaknesses today. They should person got up astir 180-190, and could person got 200 astatine 1 stage.

"But we are clutching astatine straws. They are a precise beardown side."

• 'I person my tribe's sanction tattooed connected my arm' - Gardner connected her aboriginal roots

'We've started precisely however we wanted' - reaction

Australia skipper Meg Lanning: "Healy and Perry were unthinkable to enactment New Zealand nether pressure. We are truly blessed with our performance."

New Zealand skipper Sophie Devine: "To enactment it bluntly we were truly mediocre contiguous successful each facets of the game. I thought Australia batted peculiarly well. It is truly disappointing."

Player of the lucifer Ashleigh Gardner: "That was acceptable up by our batters and that gave america flexibility and state with the ball. We've started precisely successful the mode we wanted excessively and I was conscionable fortunate capable to instrumentality the wickets astatine the end."