West Indies vs New Zealand Women's T20 World Cup Predictions - Defending champs look too strong for the West Indies

Simon Lewis

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Last updated: 1 hour ago

Simon Lewis 1 hour ago

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New Zealand are defending champs and have a good record against the West Indies.
The West Indies have been inconsistent but have some talented players.
New Zealand have had a good build-up with series against South Africa and England.

Sophie Devine is a run-scoring machine (Getty Images).

West Indies vs New Zealand Women Predictions

The New Zealand squad is filled with seasoned campaigners while the West Indies are going through something of an interim period with a more inexperienced squad.

West Indies vs New Zealand Women Predictions
Head-to-Head
West Indies Women Form
New Zealand Women Form
Team news

West Indies Women’s Hayley Matthews has scored 3,237 T20I runs (ave 29.42).
West Indies Women’s Deandra Dottin has scored 49 & 46 in her last 2 knocks.
West Indies Women’s Afy Fletcher took 4/23 against India 5 days ago.
New Zealand Women’s Sophie Devine has scored 45, 87 & 28 in her last 4 knocks.
New Zealand Women’s Melie Kerr has scored 51* & 61 in her last 2 matches.
New Zealand Women’s Nensi Patel has picked up 7 wickets in her last 4 matches.
New Zealand Women have won their last 5 T20Is against the West Indies.

Head-to-Head

New Zealand Women have won four of their last five T20 matches against the West Indies Women. The other match ended in a tie, with New Zealand winning the one-over elimination shoot-out.

West Indies Women Form

The West Indies lost their recent series to Australia 3-0 and followed that up with wins over Pakistan and Ireland followed by a one-run defeat to Ireland in the recent Ireland Tri-Nation Women's T20I Series.

Hayley Matthews is a West Indies legend and has scored 56, 30*, 22, 45, 34, 82* and 40 in her last nine innings. Deandra Dottin has scored high-40s in her last two matches while Jannillea Glasgow has innings of 42, 36 and 19 in her last three completed knocks.

Afy Fletcher has picked up six wickets in her last five matches and has gone for 23 runs or less in each of those bowling performances. Shawnisha Hector (2/21 and 2/21) and Chinelle Henry (2/13 and 2/13) have been the West Indies’ two most successful bowlers in recent matches.

New Zealand Women Form

New Zealand have won five of their last eight T20Is after beating South Africa 4-1 and losing 2-1 to England.

Sophie Devine is one of their most reliable batters with 3,719 runs in T20Is at an average of 28.82. Melie Kerr has been in good touch, hitting 51* and 61 in her last two innings. Georgia Plimmer has scored 28 and 38 in her last two innings and Izzy Sharp’s last three knocks have brought scores of 26* and 46.

Nensi Patel has been New Zealand’s star with the ball in recent months, taking 2/14, 1/34, 1/23, 2/25, 1/7 and 4/18 in her last seven matches. Lea Tahuhu has taken 3/15, 1/32 and 1/12 in her last three matches.

Team news

The West Indies have an injury concern around Chinelle Henry who landed badly in attempting to take a catch in the warm-up match against Australia.

“Chinelle Henry experienced an exacerbation of a previous injury and is currently being managed by the team's medical staff. Further updates will be provided as appropriate,” read a statement from Cricket West Indies.

New Zealand’s Amelia Kerr was one of the stars of the 2024 tournament and is now skipper of her side for the 2026 campaign.

“There's a lot of talk about defending a title, but that was two years ago and a lot has changed. We've got a slightly different side and a different group. One thing winning taught us is that we can do it. That gives you belief that you can win when you're under pressure on the biggest stage. Whether things start well or badly, we know we can find a way to win from different situations,” said Kerr in her pre-tournament interview with the press.

West Indies Women (possible XI): Hayley Matthews (c), Deandra Dottin, Qiana Joseph, Stafanie Taylor, Jahzara Claxton, Chinelle Henry, Jannillea Glasgow, Shawnisha Hector, Mandy Mangru, Ashmini Munisar, Afy Fletcher.

New Zealand Women (possible XI): Isabella Gaze, Georgia Plimmer, Amelia Kerr (c), Sophie Devine, Brooke Halliday, Maddy Green, Izzy Sharp, Jess Kerr, Bree Illing, Lea Tahuhu, Nensi Patel.

Verdict

West Indies v New Zealand Women

New Zealand Women are tipped to win at odds of 1.41, with Hayley Matthews, Sophie Devine, Afy Fletcher and Nensi Patel backed to star with bat and ball.